| Navy's newest variant of the Fire Scout unmanned helicopter completed its first day of flying today, Oct. 31 at Naval Base Ventura County at Point Mugu, CA. The unmanned helicopter lifted off at 12:05 pm PDT and flew for seven minutes in restricted airspace to validate the autonomous control systems. The second flight that took off at 2:39 pm was also flown in a pattern around the airfield, reaching 500 feet altitude. The Northrop Grumman MQ-8C is a larger air vehicle will can provide, has a range of 150 nautical miles and a payload capacity of more than 700 pounds. The MQ-8C air vehicle upgrade will provide longer endurance, range and greater payload capability than the MQ-8B, which is currently operating aboard USS Samuel B. Roberts. |