USN still pursuing unmanned strike aircraft
Marina Malenic, Washington, DC - IHS Jane's Defence Weekly
http://www.janes.com/article/58989/usn-still-pursuing-unmanned-strike-aircraft23 March 2016
The X-47B successfully completes an autonomous aerial refuelling demonstration over Chesapeake Bay on 22 April 2015. Officials said the navy has not abandoned plans for an unmanned maritime strike platform despite its stated intention to build a new unmanned tanker with ISR capability. Source: USN
Key Points
The US navy still intends to pursue unmanned maritime strike with knowledge from its UCLASS successor
A UCLASS solicitation was delayed for more than a year while various factions fought over options for a long-range strike aircraft and a smaller ISR aircraft
The US Navy (USN) earlier this year transformed its developmental Unmanned Carrier-Launched Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) unmanned aircraft programme into a ship-based aerial refuelling tanker with intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capability, but the service has not abandoned plans for an unmanned strike aircraft, a senior official said on 22 March.
Now known as the Carrier Based Aerial Refueling System (CBARS), the new platform will begin life as a tanker with ISR capability, USN air warfare director Rear Admiral Michael Manazir said at an Air Force Association briefing. "Future long-range strike will capitalise on the learning we do with this platform," he said.
By developing CBARS, the navy is using the most rapid and affordable method for deploying unmanned aircraft from its carrier decks. "We are very anxious to get unmanned aircraft onto the aircraft carrier," the admiral said. "CBARS will do tanking and ISR [and] is how we get unmanned [aircraft] onto the carrier rapidly and at the least cost."
The navy surprised defence analysts ahead of the White House's fiscal year 2017 budget request by quietly revealing plans to transform the UCLASS programme into CBARS. The service delayed issuing a solicitation for UCLASS for more than a year while various factions within the navy, at the Pentagon's upper echelon and on Capitol Hill, wrangled over requirements - with some pushing for a long-range, heavily armed strike aircraft and others advocating for a smaller aircraft primarily geared towards an ISR role.
Under the revised plan, the new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) retains some ISR capability in addition to its new refuelling role, but it does not carry ordnance and is not stealthy.
