Boeing ScanEagle
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| ScanEagle | |
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| Role | unmanned aerial vehicle |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Boeing |
| First flight | June 20, 2002 |
| Introduced | 2005 (United States Navy) |
| Primary users | United States Military Australian Army United Kingdom |
ScanEagle is a low cost, long endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) built by Boeing and Insitu.
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[edit] Design and development
ScanEagle is a descendant of another Insitu UAV, SeaScan, which was conceived of as a remote sensor for collecting weather data as well as helping commercial fishermen locate and track schools of tuna. ScanEagle emerged as the result of a strategic alliance between Boeing and Insitu. The resulting technology has been successful as a portable Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) for autonomous surveillance in the battlefield, and has been deployed since August 2004 in the Iraq War.
ScanEagle carries an inertially stabilized electro-optical and/or infrared camera on a light-weight inertially stabilized turret system integrated with communications range over 100 km, and flight endurance of 20+ hours. ScanEagle has a 10-foot (3 m) wingspan and can fly up to 75 knots (139 km/h). Block D aircraft featured a higher resolution camera, a custom-designed Mode C transponder and a new video system. A Block D aircraft, flying at Boeing's test range in Boardman, Oregon set a type endurance record of 22 hours, 8 minutes.[1]
ScanEagle needs no airfield to deploy. Instead, it is launched using a pneumatic launcher designed as part of a university engineering design project, now patented by Insitu as the "SuperWedge" launcher. It is recovered using the "SkyHook" retrieval system, which uses a hook on the end of the wingtip to catch a rope hanging from a 30 to 50-foot (15 m) pole. This is made possible by a high-quality differential GPS units mounted on the top of the pole and UAV. The rope is attached to a shockcord to reduce stress on the airframe imposed by the violent stop.
[edit] Uses
The ScanEagle entered service with the U.S. Navy in 2005.[2] In addition to the United States military, the Australian Army also operates the ScanEagle UAV.[3] As well the Canadian Government announced in August 2008 that they would lease the ScanEagle for use of their military operations in Afghanistan. [4]
On March 18, 2008 Boeing, with ImSAR and Insitu successfully flight-tested a ScanEagle with a Nano-SAR radar mounted aboard. The Nano-SAR is the world's smallest Synthetic Aperture Radar, weighs two pounds and is roughly the size of a shoe box. It is designed to provide high quality real-time ground imaging through adverse weather conditions or other battlefield obsurants.[5]
[edit] References
- ^ "Boeing ScanEagle achieves major flight milestones", Aerotech News & Review, November 23, 2006
- ^ "Boeing Awarded Navy Contract for ScanEagle Services". Boeing (2008-06-06).
- ^ Army Technology/, Defense Jobs of Australia
- ^ CBC News, Canadian military acquiring new helicopters, drones
- ^ Boeing Flight-Tests 2-Pound Imaging Radar Aboard ScanEagle Unmanned Aircraft, Boeing, March 18, 2008.
[edit] External links
- CASR Illustrated Background Page - Updated: 07 August 2008
- Insitu ScanEagle product page
- ScanEagle page on Boeing.com
- DefenseLink article on ScanEagle deployment in Iraq.
- Insitu home page, with links to pictures and video of ScanEagle.
- Video of ScanEagle takeoff and caputure.
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