Author Topic: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)  (Read 88522 times)

Offline GTX_Admin

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #200 on: June 28, 2020, 02:13:37 AM »
Cool ASW configured Reaper (or SeaGuardian) configured image:



Click on image to see larger version.
« Last Edit: June 28, 2020, 02:15:30 AM by GTX_Admin »
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

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But you can make the Bastard work for it.

Offline GTX_Admin

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #201 on: July 28, 2020, 03:18:50 AM »
Possible future real-world:

All hail the God of Frustration!!!

You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it.

Offline Volkodav

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #202 on: August 02, 2020, 04:23:31 PM »
Possible future real-world:



Interestingly Army Aviation acquaintances have told me that these will not be treated as aircraft, or even maintained as such, more like rounds of ammunition.  I would have assumed that a UAV would require more strict control and maintenance than manned aircraft, then again I has always been suspicious of the aviation world pyramid of cards based on the signed affirmation.

Offline ScranJ51

  • Fast Jet, Fast Prop, Fast Racing Cars - thats me!!
Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #203 on: August 10, 2020, 08:35:31 PM »
Volkodav;

I remember attending a UAV Conference in Melbourne somewhere around 2003 or so.  One of the presenters was from Singapore, and he explained that initially serviceability and survival of their initial UAV's was very poor, because the UAV's were treated like "rounds".  When the RSAF started to treat and maintain them like aircraft, both soared.

I think the initial experience with the Black Hawk (where Army treated them like trucks) bears out your concern.
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Offline Volkodav

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #204 on: August 26, 2020, 08:39:00 PM »
Volkodav;

I remember attending a UAV Conference in Melbourne somewhere around 2003 or so.  One of the presenters was from Singapore, and he explained that initially serviceability and survival of their initial UAV's was very poor, because the UAV's were treated like "rounds".  When the RSAF started to treat and maintain them like aircraft, both soared.

I think the initial experience with the Black Hawk (where Army treated them like trucks) bears out your concern.

I wouldn't trust many army aviation maintainers I know to work on trucks let alone aircraft. Don't get me wrong, some were great but most were delusional, perfect examples of the Dunning Kruger Effect.  My brother works for an aviation organisation and has an even lower opinion of their "Aircraft Maintenance Engineers" he is disturbed that they get to call themselves engineers.  Strangely I have found FAA types to be unusually competent, maybe they are afraid if they don't perform they will be gifted to the stokers as play things.

Offline kitnut617

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #205 on: August 26, 2020, 09:16:55 PM »
That's pretty much in the same vein as what janitors are called these days isn't it --- sanitary engineers --- 

Offline jcf

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #206 on: August 29, 2020, 05:47:09 AM »
Early quad-copter RPV (drone) crop sprayer, a 1960 concept from Gloster Aircraft.
10' diameter rotors on folding arms, length 22' 10", width 20' 7", height 3'. 105hp
Potez 4E air-cooled flat-four. 20 gal spray tank, 22' spray-bar. Two operators, one
on each end of the field, control would automatically switch to whichever was closest
to prevent over-running the target field, the drone also automatically homed in on
the controllers. It was intended that it would be trailered from field to field with the
arms folded.

“Conspiracy theory’s got to be simple.
Sense doesn’t come into it. People are
more scared of how complicated shit
actually is than they ever are about
whatever’s supposed to be behind the
conspiracy.”
-The Peripheral, William Gibson 2014

Offline GTX_Admin

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #207 on: August 30, 2020, 01:39:49 AM »
 :smiley:
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it.

Offline apophenia

  • Perversely enjoys removing backgrounds.
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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #208 on: August 30, 2020, 06:24:56 AM »
Has this one been posted before?

Based on those Mustang-y radiators, I'm assuming the drivetrain is identical to the prototype Celera 500L passenger aircraft. Maybe the whole airframe is the same? Fuselage looks longer to me.
Froglord: "... amphibious doom descends ... approach the alter and swear your allegiance to the swamp."

Offline jcf

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #209 on: September 13, 2020, 08:15:58 AM »
This little graphic suggests a narrower fuselage that doesn't have a circular cross-section.

“Conspiracy theory’s got to be simple.
Sense doesn’t come into it. People are
more scared of how complicated shit
actually is than they ever are about
whatever’s supposed to be behind the
conspiracy.”
-The Peripheral, William Gibson 2014

Offline apophenia

  • Perversely enjoys removing backgrounds.
  • Patterns? What patterns?
Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #210 on: September 14, 2020, 10:41:31 AM »
Interesting. So, if the artist's impression is accurate at all, the fuselage profile is flattened vertically at the mid-point but transitions to being flattened horizonantally towards the nose?
Froglord: "... amphibious doom descends ... approach the alter and swear your allegiance to the swamp."

Offline The Big Gimper

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #211 on: May 12, 2022, 03:00:12 AM »
At the Indo-Pacific International Maritime Exhibition 2022 in Syndey, Australia, <<Greg, are you there?>> General Atomics has presented a new variant of the MQ-9B Guardian platform: the MQ-9B STOL. The MQ-9B STOL is a conversion kit for existing MQ-9B, replacing the wings and tail assemblies to allow for Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) operations.

Much like the existing conversion kits allowing for existing MQ-9Bs to serve as the SeaGuardian, which carry the added fairing underneath that can accommodate the Raytheon SeaVue XMC or Leonardo SeaSpray maritime radars, or the armed SkyGuardian, which has the capability to carry munitions. The MQ-9B carries the Detect-and-Avoid Due Regard radar kit in the nose, allowing for operations in non-segregated airspace alongside other crewed aircraft





Source: https://www.overtdefense.com/2022/05/11/new-mq-9b-stol-expands-on-mojave-program/
Work in progress ::

I am giving up listing them. They all end up on the shelf of procrastination anyways.

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Offline GTX_Admin

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #212 on: May 12, 2022, 03:10:31 AM »
At the Indo-Pacific International Maritime Exhibition 2022 in Syndey, Australia, <<Greg, are you there?>>

Nope - not this time.  Too many other things underway.

I'm thinking a bunch of 1/700 versions of this and a HMAS Canberra kit might make an interesting build.
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it.


Offline Daryl J.

  • Assures us he rarely uses model glue in dentistry
Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #214 on: November 20, 2023, 12:53:37 PM »
Pre-Dream Chaser Tenacity space plane, significantly smaller in size.
Launched from a B-52 at altitude into the uppermost fringes of the atmosphere/very low earth orbit for recce overflights of areas of concern.
Lands at night at Groom Lake.
Explains why SR-71 missions were no longer needed.
 :icon_fsm:
kwyxdxLg5T

Offline GTX_Admin

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Re: Uninhabited and Unafraid, (UCAV, UAV, and Drone Aircraft)
« Reply #215 on: March 27, 2024, 01:33:14 AM »
All hail the God of Frustration!!!

You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it.