US Navy and Boeing Demonstrated The Ability to Control Unmanned Aircraft With a Manned Jet WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy and Boeing demonstrated the ability to control unmanned aircraft with a manned jet, a capability that is critical for concepts intended to keep naval aviation relevant into the 21st century.
The Navy’s test wing out of Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, flew two unmanned E/A-18G Growlers, with a third manned fighter acting as mission control for the drones, according to a Feb. 4 news release from Boeing. The test “proved the effectiveness of technology allowing F/A-18 Super Hornets and EA-18G Growlers to perform combat missions with unmanned systems,” the release said.
“This demonstration allows Boeing and the Navy the opportunity to analyze the data collected and decide where to make investments in future technologies,” Tom Brandt, Boeing’s manned-unmanned teaming demonstration lead, said in the release. “It could provide synergy with other U.S. Navy unmanned systems in development across the spectrum and in other services.”
The test was conducted under the aegis of Navy Warfare Development Command as part of its fleet experiment exercise, the release said. The Navy will increasingly rely on networked weapons and drones commanded by manned aircraft operating forward as part of an effort to extend the service’s fighting range and sharpen the teeth of its air wing. It’s a concept of operations that was detailed in a recent study by the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments.
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