Loyal wingman je koncept bespilotnih letelica kontrolisanih iz vazduha od strane pilota u lovackim i drugim avionima, gde bi se iz jednog aviona kontrolisalo celo odeljenje dronova. Njihova namena bi bila visestruka, za napad na vazdusne i zemaljske ciljeve, ometanje radara, ometanje i napad na sistema PVO.
27. februara na Australia International Airshow 2019. Boeing je predstavio svoj koncpet pokazavsi javno model svoje letelice. Prvi let se ocekuje tokom 2020.
Citat:The aircraft will complement and extend airborne missions through smart teaming with existing military aircraft.
A model of the Boeing Airpower Teaming System was unveiled at the Australian International Airshow by the Australian Minister for Defence, the Hon. Christopher Pyne MP. As a research and development activity, the Australian Government and Boeing will produce a concept demonstrator called the Loyal Wingman – Advanced Development Program that will provide key learnings toward the production of the Boeing Airpower Teaming System.
“The Boeing Airpower Teaming System will provide a disruptive advantage for allied forces’ manned/unmanned missions,” said Kristin Robertson, vice president and general manager of Boeing Autonomous Systems. “With its ability to reconfigure quickly and perform different types of missions in tandem with other aircraft, our newest addition to Boeing’s portfolio will truly be a force multiplier as it protects and projects air power.”
The Boeing Airpower Teaming System will:
-- Provide fighter-like performance, measuring 38 feet long (11.7 metres) and able to fly more than 2,000 nautical miles
-- Integrate sensor packages onboard to support intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions and electronic warfare
-- Use artificial intelligence to fly independently or in support of manned aircraft while maintaining safe distance between other aircraft.
“This aircraft is a historic endeavor for Boeing. Not only is it developed outside the United States, it is also designed so that our global customers can integrate local content to meet their country-specific requirements,” said Marc Allen, president, Boeing International. “The Boeing Airpower Teaming System provides a transformational capability in terms of defense, and our customers – led by Australia – effectively become partners on the program with the ability to grow their own sovereign capabilities to support it, including a high-tech workforce.”
Citat:-A prototype is being built now.
-Can fly with or without a manned partner.
-Has a range of roughly 2,000 miles.
-Is 38 feet long and uses a bizjet class engine.
-Will team with E-7, EA-18G, F/A-18E/F, and P-8 Poseidon.
-Modular design for 'snap-in' payloads and rapid reconfiguration capability.
-Initial configuration will be sensor/intelligence and electronic warfare focused.
-Controlled via ground station, other aircraft, and has some level of autonomy that can scale for the mission.
Citat:The XQ-58A Valkyrie demonstrator, a long-range, high subsonic unmanned air vehicle completed its inaugural flight March 5, 2019, at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona. The Air Force Research Laboratory partnered with Kratos Unmanned Aerial Systems to develop the XQ-58A.
This joint effort falls within the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology, or LCAAT, portfolio, which has the objective to break the escalating cost trajectory of tactically relevant aircraft. The objectives of the LCAAT initiative include designing and building UAS faster by developing better design tools and maturing and leveraging commercial manufacturing processes to reduce build time and cost.
Developed for runway independence, the aircraft behaved as expected and completed 76 minutes of flight time. The time to first flight took a little over 2.5 years from contract award. The XQ-58A has a total of five planned test flights in two phases with objectives that include evaluating system functionality, aerodynamic performance and launch and recovery systems.
“XQ-58A is the first example of a class of UAV that is defined by low procurement and operating costs while providing game changing combat capability,” said Doug Szczublewski, AFRL’s XQ-58A Program Manager.
Citat:AFRL has launched a program to test an artificial intelligence “pilot” on multiple aircraft - BQM drones, XQ-58 Valkyrie and QF-16. And it’s called ... (drum roll) Skyborg.
Прва употреба :
On 6 January 2018, Russian forces thwarted a drone (UAV) swarm attack on the base, the first of this kind in the history of warfare. Statements from Russia's MoD on 8 and 10 January confirmed earlier reports about the incident, saying that the attempted attack that involved 13 armed, fixed-wing drones which were used to attack both the Hmeimim base and the Tartus naval facility on 5—6 January was repulsed by the Russian forces' radio-electronic warfare technologies; it also refuted earlier reports that a greater number of UAVs were involved in the attack and alleged that the drones could have been obtained only from a country that possessed "high-tech capabilities for providing satellite navigation and remote control."
Referring to the 6 January swarm attack on 25 October, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Colonel General Alexander Fomin stated that "Thirteen drones moved according to common combat battle deployment, operated by a single crew. During all this time the American Poseidon-8 reconnaissance plane patrolled the Mediterranean Sea area for eight hours," according to the TASS article which provided details on the operation and how the Poseidon managed the attack and the drones were switched from autonomus to manual control. Further analysis was provided by Editor-in-Chief of National Defense journal Igor Korotchenko stating "There were three such goals: uncovering the Russian air defense system in Syria, carrying out radio-electronic reconnaissance and inflicting actual harm to our servicemen in Syria," in a 2nd TASS article providing further information on the Russian analysis of the attack and the Russian official belief that it was a Pentagon operation. The Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed the Deputy Defence Minister's claim. In a statement to Military Times the Pentagon said “Any suggestion that U.S. or coalition forces played a role in an attack on a Russian base is without any basis in fact and is utterly irresponsible,” in an article covering the likelihood of the Russian claims.
On 24 April, the airbase was targeted by another wave of drones in a swarm attack. Russian forces reported they had intercepted and destroyed several "small-size unidentified airborne targets" while they approached the base.
To nema nikakve veze sa ovom temom. Isis je slao male dronove, ove sto mogu u prodavnici da se kupe na koje su kacili eksploziv. I kojekakve home made varijante.
A opet druga stvar su pravi rojevi, to je koncept koji jos nije uveden ali se radi na njemu ozbiljino, kao sto su gremlini.
Како да нема везе, ово су почетци употребе таквог система, а нормално је да не шаљу ројеве ових Х58, него баш ручно прављених да се не може доказати поријекло. Ово им је прочитана шанса за употребу у реалним борбеним условима.
То је типичан примјер слања и управљања већег броја беспилотних летјелица из једног командног центра на циљ.
