The next-generation MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter has taken to the air for the first time at Naval Base Ventura County (NBVC) in California. Built by Northrop Grumman around a Bell 407 helicopter, the MQ-8C is designed to boast twice the endurance and three times the payload capacity of theMQ-8B variant that has clocked up over 5,000 flight hours in Afghanistan.
The maiden flight took place on October 31, with the unmanned helicopter taking off at 12:05 pm and flying for seven minutes in restricted airspace at NBVC to validate the autonomous control system. A second flight lasting nine minutes took off a couple of hours later and saw the aircraft reach an altitude of 500 ft while flying in a pattern around the airfield. A ground-based US Navy/Northrop Grumman flight test team at NBVC controlled the aircraft on both flights.
"During at-sea deployments, operators saw the need for a system that carried the same intelligence-gathering capabilities of the MQ-8B, but fly longer and carry additional payloads. Changing out the airframe, installing control systems and avionics, and then conducting a first flight of the system in a year is truly remarkable. I couldn't be more proud of the team."
The MQ-8B, which is based on the Sikorsky Schweizer 333 light piston-powered helicopter and boasts an endurance of over eight hours or the ability to carry payloads of up to 700 lb (320 kg) for short range missions.
Northrop Grumman is under contract to supply the US Navy with the first eight of 30 planned MQ-8C Fire Scouts that are set to enter service by mid-2014.
Source: Northrop Grumman
