March 29, 2024

MQ-8B Drone Crashes Upon Deployment

An MQ-8B Fire Scout UAV crashed upon deployment into the littoral combat ship USS Charleston and fell into the sea. It was not recovered.

Navy’s First Female Jet Pilot Dies

Female Jet Pilot

The US Navy’s first female jet pilot, Rosemary Mariner, died last week. She was 65.

Robust Year Ahead for NAVAIR UAS Programs

Development milestones upcoming for NAVAIR UAS programs: Triton, MQ-8B, and Blackjack.

Navy May Cut Triton Buy

The unmanned MQ-4C Triton aircraft’s improved reliability could lead the Navy to buy fewer of the UAVs than the 68 it now has on order.

Fire Scout ‘Hard Landing’ at Webster Field Investigated

Fire Scout at Pax

Initial damage estimate for Webster Field MQ-8B Fire Scout “hard landing” is at least $2 million.

A New Age of Aircraft Carriers?

aircraft carrier

China’s entry into the aircraft carrier club could change the balance of power in the Pacific.

NAVAIR Gains New Fire Scout Experts in Afghanistan

Fire Scout experts

Maintenance and operations officers from Northrop Grumman recently became government employees.

Pax River Fixing and Arming the Fire Scout

Engineers at Webster Field have identified problems with the Fire Scout unmanned helicopter and plan to arm it with rockets.

Report: Fire Scout Not Meeting 30-Hour Reliability

Fire Scout on deck

Report also notes that the P-8A Poseidon program is eight weeks behind schedule.

Sea-Air-Space: The Fire Scout … Floats?

MQ-8B Fire Scout Model

It may have trouble landing at times, but the Fire Scout unmanned helicopter can apparently float until fished out of the water.