During EDGE 22, Textron Systems’ new RQ-7B Block III Improved Shadow Tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (TUAS), utilizing its enhanced optics, terminally guided a Hellfire munition to assist in qualifying the Future Attack Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA) Modular Effects Launcher (MEL). The Hellfire was launched by a UH-60 helicopter acting as a FARA surrogate.
The team also employed Textron Systems’ One System Remote Video Terminal (OSRVT) technology to provide the critical geospatial data needed throughout the event.Â
This engagement highlights the expanded mission sets and enduring value that Textron Systems’ newest TUAS and battlefield connective products can provide in a technically advanced battlespace.
“This event is pivotal to showcasing the enhanced capabilities that the improved Shadow Block III TUAS provides, and the expanded missions it will enable the Combat Aviation Brigades and Special Forces Groups to perform,” said Wayne Prender, Senior Vice President of Air Systems. “Coupled with OSRVT, this aircraft provides the manned-unmanned warfighter team with the unparalleled ability to support units across all domains.”
The US Army Experimental Demonstration Gateway Exercise 2022 (EDGE 22) is a risk mitigation event focused on assessing new tactics and evaluating new technologies and architectures. EDGE 22 is held in advance of the annual Project Convergence event, a sensor-to-shooter experiment focused on testing multi-domain operation capabilities and enhanced sustainment, held later this year. Textron Systems aims to continue to support the Army’s modernization efforts at Project Convergence 22.
