Precision, Wireless Ground Handling of X-47B Unmanned Aircraft
Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Navy have taken a first critical step toward
demonstrating that the X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) demonstrator can
be maneuvered safely and wirelessly on the crowded deck of an aircraft carrier.
In early November, the team successfully completed its first shore-based
trials of a new wireless, handheld device called a Control Display Unit (CDU).
Developed by Northrop Grumman, the device will allow deck operators to maneuver
the X-47B by remote control on the carrier deck.
The team demonstrated the CDU's ability to control the X-47B's engine thrust;
to roll the aircraft forward, brake and stop; to use its nose wheel steering to
execute tight, precision turns; and to maneuver the aircraft efficiently into a
catapult or out of the landing area following a mock carrier landing. Northrop
Grumman is the Navy's prime contractor for the UCAS Carrier Demonstration
(UCAS-D) program.
"The CDU is fundamental to integrating the X-47B seamlessly into carrier deck
operations," said Daryl Martis, Northrop Grumman's UCAS-D test director.
