X-47B Carrier Demo Aircraft Makes First Flight

摘要

Northrop Grumman's X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System Demonstration (UCAS-D) made its first flight on 4 Feb., taking off from Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., on a 29-minute flight that took it to 5,000 feet and may have ushered in a pending age of unmanned systems launched from aircraft carriers. "First flight represents the compilation of numerous tests to validate the airworthiness of the aircraft and the robustness and reliability of the software that allows it to operate as an autonomous system and eventually have the ability to takeoff and land aboard an aircraft carrier," says Capt.