Fire Scout completes video terminal interoperability demo
The Fire Scout vertical unmanned aircraft system has completed a successful demonstration of its ability to synchronize with the Army’s One System Remote Video Terminal.
The Fire Scout vertical unmanned aircraft system has completed a successful demonstration of its ability to synchronize with the Army’s One System Remote Video Terminal.
The Fire Scout interoperability test took place at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz., Northrop Grumman officials said Jan. 8. Northrop Grumman makes the land-based MQ-8B vertical take-off unmanned aircraft system.
The test is one of a series planned to prepare the Fire Scout to participate in the upcoming Army Expeditionary Warrior Experiment at Fort Benning, Ga., Northrop Grumman officials said. The Army intends to use the Fire Scout to perform Army unmanned aircraft systems' missions to support the Brigade Combat Teams during the experiment.
The One System Remote Video Terminal provides direct receipt of full-motion video and targeting metadata by capturing the Omni broadcast from unmanned aircraft systems. The terminal is manufactured by AAI Corp.
"Working with the [One System Remote Video Terminal] team, we were able to integrate the sensor downlink from the Fire Scout into the rugged manpack system for display to the user,” said Mike Roberts, a chief engineer with Northrop Grumman’s Aerospace Systems sector. He said the integration was accomplished without making any changes to the Fire Scout’s data link or air-to-ground interface.
The video and data system embodied in the terminal makes it possible for warfighters to downlink live surveillance images and critical geospatial data.