An X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) demonstrator is towed into the hangar bay of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush. (U.S. NAVY PHOTO BY MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 2ND CLASS TIMOTHY WALTER)
Reuters: U.S. Navy chief sees need to move forward quickly on carrier drone
The U.S. Navy needs to "get going" on a new, unmanned armed aircraft that can operate from the deck of an aircraft carrier, U.S. Chief of Naval of Operations Admiral John Richardson said on Monday.
He said the Navy's long-delayed Unmanned Carrier-Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) effort was a "prime candidate" for a new approach aimed at speeding up acquisition programs and benefiting from field experience.
"That's a prime candidate for trying to get something out there ... so that we can learn how to operate an unmanned aerial vehicle from a carrier," Richardson said after an event hosted by the U.S. Naval Institute. He added that the new aircraft would also "serve a real purpose ... beyond experimentation."
A U.S. Navy official last month told Reuters the Navy would map out the future of the new carrier-based drone as part of its fiscal 2017 budget proposal, with an initial focus on surveillance, the approach long favored by the Navy.
Update: CNO Richardson Urges Fast-Track For Cyber, EW & Drones (Breaking Defense)
WNU Editor: Like the U.S. Air Force, the U.S. Navy is going drone.
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