The United Arab Emirates got a 10-day look at the MQ-8 Fire Scout as Northrop Grumman prepared the unmanned vertical takeoff and landing system for US Navy evaluation later this year.
In early July, a UAE-painted Fire Scout weathered extreme conditions during the demonstration, including takeoffs and landings in 47 degrees Celsius (117 degrees Fahrenheit) heat and high, sand-filled winds. The four-bladed unmanned helicopter climbed to test altitudes of nearly 10,000ft and demonstrated its non-line-of-sight sensor operations capabilities, including its FLIR Systems electro-optical/infrared sensing capabilities used to locate and acquire targets.
A video montage of Fire Scout field trial sensor was presented 14 June to interested multi-national government agencies and media, showcasing the MQ-8's real-time imagery-transmission capability, Northrop says.
The US Navy's will conduct operational evaluation of the system late this year aboard the USS Halyburton
With more than 20 million flight hours, it is currently the Pentagon's only unmanned VTOL programme of record.
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