US Navy’s X-47B completes first-ever aerial refueling of drone

Americas, News, US April 24, 2015 , by IRIA No Comments

US Navy conducts historic first ever UAV aerial refueling

The US Navy’s unmanned X-47B aircraft became the first drone to demonstrate aerial refueling capabilities earlier this week when it successfully plugged its in-flight refueling (IFR) probe into the hose of an Omega Air tanker off the coast of Maryland.

According to media reports, one of the two Northrop Grumman-made unmanned carrier air vehicles (UCAS-D) in the X-47B program paired with an Omega Air KC-707 air tanker and successfully demonstrated aerial refueling capabilities for the first time.

US Navy launched and landed the X-47B in rapid succession with an F/A-18 fighter jet as part of a series of joint manned and unmanned flight tests aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt in August of last year off the coast of Norfolk, Va., service officials said.

After an eight minute flight, the X-47B executed an arrested landing, folded its wings and taxied out of the landing area before moving out of the way for an F/A-18 to land, Navy officials said.

Navy engineers worked on some slight modifications to the X-47B aircraft in order to allow it to both land and integrate in rapid succession with fixed-wing fighter jets.

The refueling of the X-47B happens as the Pentagon’s ongoing review of the Navy’s next-generation carrier-launched unmanned drone works to make sure the new platform is well-suited to operate in a joint combat environment – and prominent members of Congress continue to push for a stealthy, long-endurance, penetrating strike capability.

X-47B flies over NAS Patuxent River, Md. in August 2012. Photo: US Navy

An ongoing Pentagon intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, or ISR, review is currently exploring the range of desired attributes for the Navy’s Unmanned Carrier Launched Aircraft Surveillance and Strike system, or UCLASS.

The X-47B carrier-launched drone is a demonstrator platform designed to inform the development of UCLASS.