US ARMY FOCUSING ON AIR-LAUNCHED EXPENDABLES VEHICLE DESIGNS

摘要

The US Army's Combat Capabilities Development Command (CCDC) is seeking proposals from companies to conduct configurations, trades and analyses (CTA) for its nascent Air-Launched Effect (ALE) Science and Technology (S&T) program. Under the ALE concept, the Army wants to develop a family of small, at-tritable unmanned air systems that can be deployed by manned helicopter, such as the Future Airborne Reconnaissance Aircraft (FARA). The ALE platforms will fly out ahead of the manned aircraft, provide ISR information to the FARA via datalinks and engage targets with kinetic and non-kinetic weapons. The FARA and ALE will work together in a manned-unmanned teaming paradigm.