Airbus US Space & Defense recently shared that it successfully carried out its first demonstration for a program supporting the US Marine Corps.
The demonstration took place at Marine Corps Air Station New River and Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune. It is part of a project to improve Marines’ aerial logistics.
The demonstration assessed the performance characteristics of the Airbus UH-72B Lakota autonomous helicopter and validated the aircraft’s capability to transport specialized cargo.
This showcased Airbus’ strategies for fulfilling Marine Corps requirements for an Aerial Logistics Connector system to support expeditionary advanced base operations.
First demo
“Integrating warfighter inputs early on in this phase of the contract helps ensure we’re hitting all the marks and gives us invaluable insights so we deliver the right capabilities to the U.S. Marine Corps,” said Rob Geckle, Jr., Chairman and CEO of Airbus US Space and Defense.
This event is part of the Aerial Logistics Connector Middle Tier of Acquisition (MTA) Rapid Prototyping Program.
The program aims to deliver aircraft prototypes that demonstrate capabilities to the warfighter through a series of operational demonstrations and experiments.
Future demonstrations will provide additional information about the aircraft’s capabilities. They will focus on the modifications needed for the aircraft to fulfill Marine Corps requirements for autonomous operation and carrying specialized payloads.
These demonstrations will continue throughout the rest of 2024 and 2025 and will inform future acquisition decisions for the opportunity to build prototype aircraft.
In May 2024, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) awarded Airbus US Space & Defense a Phase I Other Transactional Authority Agreement through the Naval Aviation Systems Consortium, based on its unmanned UH-72 Logistics Connector concept, a variant of the proven UH-72 Lakota platform.
The Aerial Logistics Connector effort is one of several efforts across the Department of Defense to deliver logistical support in distributed environments during peer or near-peer conflicts.
Robot helicopter
According to Airbus, the UH-72 Lakota helicopter takes what the Marines need to fight.
Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations require timely, reliable logistics support at long range. The Airbus UH-72 Logistics Connector is a low-risk, affordable solution for contested logistics in the expeditionary environment.
The helicopter is based on the H145/UH-72 platform, the predominant light twin helicopter in the world. It serves commercial, public, and military customers worldwide.
It can carry nearly 2 tons of key cargo, such as standard containers and mortar, at high speed at operationally relevant ranges.
This unmanned helicopter with low acquisition cost enables affordable mass in anti-access environments.
The range of this helicopter is nearly 350 nautical miles, with a maximum take-off weight of 8,378 lbs.
The helicopter’s operating altitude is up to 20,000 ft at a cruise speed of 135 knots.
It features MOSA, a digital backbone, and available SWAP to enhance capability while avoiding vendor lock and obsolescence problems. Open autonomy allows the use of “best of breed” technology.
The primary objective of the 20-month U.S. Marine Corps Aerial Logistics Connector demonstration program is to evaluate options for delivering essential payloads to distributed forces in austere and contested environments.
This program represents a paradigm shift enabling uncrewed aerial-delivered logistics in general support of the Marines.
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