US Army’s unmanned aircraft rodeo firms up requirements for Shadow replacement March 3
Soldiers check out Textron s Aerosonde HQ at the Future Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System rodeo at Fort Benning, Georgia in March 2021. (Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army) WASHINGTON The U.S. Army is putting the finishing touches on its requirements for a replacement for its Shadow unmanned aircraft system as it conducts a week-long rodeo with four tactical UAS that offer far greater capability than the decades old, runway-dependent, noisy and logistically burdensome system used today. The Future Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems (FTUAS) rodeo, which began March 1 at Fort Benning, Georgia and is expected to end March 5, is part of a long-running evaluation of future capabilities.
Soldiers Clamoring for RQ-7 Shadow Drone Replacement, General Says
Soldiers from the 2nd Infantry Division conduct flight tests and maneuvers at the FTUAS Rodeo on February 25-26, 2021 at Leyte West Airfield, Fort Benning, Georgia. (U.S. Army/Luke J. Allen)
3 Mar 2021
Senior Army aviation officials on Tuesday watched flight demonstrations of a handful of prototype drones built for vertical takeoffs and landings, which the service hopes will lead to a rapid replacement of the 30-year-old RQ-7B Shadow.
On a rainy day at Fort Benning, Georgia, soldiers from five brigade combat teams, or BCTs, across the Army participated in the Future Tactical Unmanned Aerial System, or FTUAS, Rodeo. The event wrapped up months of field evaluations involving four UAS the Arcturus Jump 20, L3 Harris Unmanned Systems FVR-90, Martin UAV V-Bat, and Textron Systems Aerosonde Hybrid Quad.