| RQ-7 Shadow | |
|---|---|
| Role | tactical reconnaissance UAV for ground maneuver forces |
| Manufacturer | AAI Corporation |
| First flight | 1991 |
| Introduction | 2003 |
| Number built | 100 + Delivered/332 Planned |
The RQ-7 Shadow unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is used by the United States Army and Marine Corps. Launched from a rail, it is recovered with the aid of arresting gear similar to jets on an aircraft carrier. Its gimbal-mounted, digitally-stabilized, liquid nitrogen-cooled electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) camera relays video in real time via a C-band LOS data link to the ground control station (GCS). The "R" is the Department of Defense designation for reconnaissance; "Q" means unmanned aircraft system. The "7" refers to it being the seventh of a series of purpose-built unmanned reconnaissance aircraft systems.
The Army's Unmanned Aircraft Systems Training Battalion at Fort Huachuca, AZ trains soldiers,Marines and civilians in the operation and maintenance of the Shadow UAV. The training program consists of mainly civilian instructors.
Development edit
The RQ-7 Shadow is the result of a continued US Army search for an effective battlefield UAV after the cancellation of the RQ-6 Outrider aircraft. AAI followed up their RQ-2 Pioneer UAV with the similar but refined Shadow 200, and in late 1999[citation needed] the Army selected the Shadow 200 to fill the tactical UAV requirement, redesignating it the RQ-7. The Army requirement[citation needed] specified a UAV that used a gasoline engine, could carry an electro-optic/infrared imaging sensor turret, and had a minimum range of 31 miles (50 kilometers) with four hour endurance on station. The Shadow 200 offered at least twice that range, powered by a 38 hp (28.5 kW) rotary engine. The Army requirement dictated[citation needed] that it be able to land in a soccer field.
Each Shadow system includes four aircraft, two ground stations, a launch trailer, and support vehicles for equipment and personnel. A SIGINT payload is in development, and is scheduled for service in 2008.[citation needed] It will swap out with the EO turret. The Army currently is working on a weapons system for the Shadow RQ-7B, which may consist of a single "drop launch" hellfire missile, or two "drop launch" hellfire missiles. Drop-launch is where the missile is dropped before the propulsion begins, to eliminate backwash, the "recoil effect", and to eliminate damage to the guidance system and the camera housing.
Quick-MEDS edit
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The US Army Aviation & Missile Command (AMCOM) in Huntsville, Alabama, has developed a supply canister, named "Quick-MEDS (Medical Emergency Delivery System)", that can be carried in pairs by a Shadow and parachuted to front-line troops with medical supplies or other emergency gear. With the appearance of a little fat aerial bomb, it has a loaded weight of 9 kilograms (20 pounds), 75% of that being payload; dimensions of 81 by 20 centimeters (32 by 8); and four "lattice fins" on the tail. These are shaped like paddles, with the flat side facing the airstream, and contain a lattice of airfoils to provide the maximum flight surface in the smallest form factor. Quick-MEDS has a crushable nose full of plastic foam and a parachute in the tail.
Operations edit
Shadow did not see service in the Afghanistan campaign of 2001-2002, but it did fly operational missions during the US Invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the subsequent occupation of that country. The operating conditions in Iraq proved hard on the UAVs, with heat and sand leading to engine failures[citation needed], leading to a high-priority effort to find fixes with changes in system technology and operating procedures. Shadow UAVs have since flown more than 100,000 combined hours[citation needed] in support of OIF .
In 2007, the United States Marine Corps began to transition from the RQ-2 Pioneer to the RQ-7 Shadow[1]. VMU-1, VMU-2 and VMU-3 now have their first systems of Shadow and will eventually have 3 systems each[citation needed]. A third UAS unit - VMU-3, was activated on September 12, 2008 in due part to the increased demand for UAS systems in the Marine Corps[citation needed] . Each Shadow system in a VMU is roughly the same as an Army Shadow platoon- 4 air vehicles and 2 ground control stations.
The Navy provided personnel for four Shadow platoons in support of Army brigades deployed in Iraq. The first two platoons returned from 6-month tours in Iraq in January and February 2008. The second two are in Iraq and should return in the summer of 2008. The Navy personnel went through the Army's training program at Fort Huachuca, AZ.[2]
The Romanian Air Force has purchased 11 Shadow 600s[citation needed], a larger, fuel injected Shadow variant. Some of these Romanian machines have been used in support of Polish troops serving in Iraq.[citation needed]
The Turkish Air Force also operates the RQ-7 Shadow 600.[3]
The California Army National Guard has fielded the first National Guard TUAS platoon, and is currently developing the first program to operate the Shadow on a monthly basis.
Variants edit
RQ-7B Shadow edit
Production of Shadow aircraft shifted to a generally improved RQ-7B variant in the summer of 2004. The RQ-7B features new wings increased in span by 91.4 centimeters (36 inches); the new wings are not only more aerodynamically efficient, they are "wet" to increase fuel storage for greater range and endurance.[citation needed] Endurance has been increased to 6 hours, and payload capability has been increased to 45 kilograms (100 pounds). After reports from Iraq that engines were failing, in 2005, the Army's UAV project manager called for the use of 100LL, an aviation fuel, rather than the conventional 87 octane mogas. Avionics systems have been generally improved, and the new wing is designed to accommodate a Communications Relay Package, which allows the aircraft to act as a relay station. This allows commanders or even the aircraft operators themselves to communicate via radio to the troops on ground in locations that would otherwise be "dead" to radio traffic.
The Shadow system has surpassed 300,000 flight hours in April 2008.[citation needed] As of July 2007, the Shadow platform accumulated 200,000 flight hours, doubling its previous record of 100,000 hours in 13 months.[citation needed] The Shadow platform has flow over 37,000 sorties in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan by US Army and Army National Guard units.[citation needed] The US Marine Corps has completed its replacement of the aging Pioneer with the Shadow.
The Shadow system has also received a special airworthiness certificate (experimental) from the Federal Aviation Administration authorizing operations at Benson Municipal Airport (this was an historical event), a general aviation facility in southeastern Arizona. This airworthiness certificate is the first issued by the FAA permitting an unmanned aircraft to operate at a public-use airport that serves general aviation, and the first FAA certificate covering the system's technologically sophisticated automated landing system.[citation needed] This is currently the only FAA certification category available to UAS manufacturers.
Shadow 600 edit
AAI has also built a scaled-up Pioneer derivative known as the "Shadow 600". It also resembles a Pioneer, except that the outer panels of the wings are distinctively swept back, and it has a stronger Wankel engine, the UAV EL 801, with 52hp. A number of Shadow 600s are in service in several nations, including Romania.[citation needed]
Specifications (200 Family) edit
General characteristics
- Length: 11 ft 2 in (3.41 m)
- Wingspan: 14 ft 0 in (3.87 m)
- Height: 3 ft 4 in (1.0 m)
- Empty weight: 186 lb (77 kg)
- Gross weight: 375 lb (170 kg)
- Powerplant: × 1 Wankel UAV Engine 741 , 38 hp (28.5 kW)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 135 mph (218 km/h, 118 kn)
- Cruise speed: 103 mph (166 km/h, 90 kn)
- Range: 68 mi (109.5 km, 59 nmi)
- Endurance: 6 hours
- Service ceiling: 15,000 ft (4,600 m) ELOS (Electronic Line Of Sight)
See also edit
Related lists
References edit
- This article contains material that originally came from the web article Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by Greg Goebel, which exists in the Public Domain.
- ^ Talton, Trista. "U.S. Marines' Shadow UAV Sees First Combat". Defensenews.com. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
{{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter:|coauthors=(help) - ^ DC Military: A month later, VC-6 unit’s homecoming just as sweet
- ^ NATO Unmanned Aircraft Systems - Operational
External links edit
- RQ-7 Shadow 200 Tactical UAV
- Shadow TUAV update
- UAV payloads
- Iran Protests U.S. Aerial Drones (RQ-7 crashes in Iran), Washington Post, November 8, 2005
- AAI Corporation (development/manufacturing)
- [http://www.aaicorp.com/html/Products/UAS/brochures/Shadow200_07-29-08.pdf Shadow 200 Brochure