Northrop Grumman Company’s MQ-8C Hearth Scout, the U.S. Navy’s autonomous, runway-independent helicopter system, efficiently accomplished operations below the Expeditionary Advance Base Operations (EABO) idea, offering persistent intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and concentrating on (ISR&T) capabilities. MQ-8C Hearth Scout was launched from the Vertical Take-Off and Touchdown Tactical Unmanned Air Car Upkeep Detachment at Naval Base Ventura County in Level Mugu, California, simulating a ship-based departure. The Navy performed a management system hand-off of the MQ-8C Hearth Scout from Level Mugu to San Clemente Island, California, demonstrating the ship-to-shore transition functionality of the platform in a maritime expeditionary atmosphere.
“We’re supporting MQ-8C deployments on littoral fight ships whereas helping the Navy with Hearth Scout mission growth efforts to incorporate operations from different floor ships and shore-based websites. This EABO demonstration additional proves the versatile utility of Hearth Scout for expeditionary use from land and throughout a number of ship lessons,” stated Lance Eischeid, director, Hearth Scout program, Northrop Grumman.
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“Hearth Scout is the Navy’s solely unmanned helicopter with the flexibility to deploy from a ship or land with ISR&T on the prolonged vary required for future warfighting. The system is significant in expeditionary use for situational consciousness and demanding decision-making,” stated Capt. Dennis Monagle, U.S. Navy.
The Northrop Grumman MQ-8C Hearth Scout (referred to as the Hearth-X throughout improvement) is an unmanned helicopter developed by Northrop Grumman to be used by the USA Navy. The MQ-8C additionally has autonomous take-off and touchdown functionality. It’s designed to offer reconnaissance, situational consciousness, aerial hearth help and precision concentrating on help for floor, air and sea forces. The MQ-8C airframe relies on the Bell 407, whereas the avionics and different techniques are developed from these used on the MQ-8B Hearth Scout. Northrop Grumman flew the MQ-8C demonstrator put in with their AN/ZPY-1 STARLite Radar, though there was no requirement for an MQ-8C radar on the time;[25] the Navy started in search of data for a radar for the MQ-8C in July 2014 with floor search, artificial aperture radar, inverse SAR, and climate mode capabilities.
With the Navy’s Moveable Mission Management Station (MCS-P), the system was recovered and redeployed quickly for operational flexibility. The moveable MCS-P floor management station helps MQ-8C Hearth Scout basing in austere areas on land, helipad operations in a complicated ahead location, and logistics help from ship flight decks. With similar ship-based {hardware}, display configuration and software program, operations stay constant throughout all ship lessons. Hearth Scout continues Northrop Grumman’s 70-year heritage of designing, constructing, delivering and sustaining the world’s most succesful unmanned plane system. Northrop Grumman is a know-how firm, targeted on international safety and human discovery.
