Four win seats on $99M unmanned aircraft contract
By
Ross Wilkers
Four suppliers take spots on a $99.5 million Army contract to deliver tactical unmanned aircraft.
Four companies have won positions on a three-year, $99.5 million contract to deliver tactical unmanned aircraft systems to the Army.
Textron’s AAI Corp. subsidiary, L3 Harris Technologies, Arcturus UAV and Martin UAV will compete for delivery orders over the contract’s duration. The Army received 11 total bids for the firm-fixed-price contract Defense Department said in its Thursday awards digest.
L3 Technologies’ proposal for the Future Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems was chosen. The company closed its merger with Harris Corp. in June to create what is now L3 Harris. Arcturus UAV and Martin UAV are small businesses.
The contract calls for deliveries of both “Group 2” and “Group 3” vehicles that gradually step up in maximum weight, nominal operating altitude and speed.
Group 2 aircraft weigh between 21 and 55 pounds at altitudes between 1,200 and 3,500 feet, while Group 3 units have weights less than 1,320 pounds and operate lower than 18,000 feet above mean sea level.