Thu, Aug 18, 2011
Griffon Aerospace Unwraps Latest Variant Of Its Small
Aircraft
This week at the AUVSI North American Conference, Griffon
Aerospace will unveil the Outlaw Extended Range (ER), which
incorporates a new fuselage providing addition payload and fuel
volume. The ER will carry up to 30 pound payloads aloft for 8-10
hours. Griffon says the ER maximizes the use of the proven Outlaw
systems which after 8 years and over 50,000 flights have maintained
a loss rate of less than 1%. Griffon has manufactured over 2,800
unmanned aircraft under contract to the US Army and Navy, and
currently produces 40 air vehicles a month.
“Several years ago we created a boom tail version of our
standard Outlaw," said Griffon CEO Larry French. "This version of
the Outlaw became known as 'Boomer' and is currently being used by
the Army for test purposes. Customer demand for increased payload
weight and endurance drove the development of ER.”
The most noticeable difference in Outlaw ER is the new fuselage
shape and move to a high wing configuration. "Although the aircraft
looks dramatically different from Outlaw Boomer, ER uses the same
avionics, engine, wing, and tail systems from our proven and
reliable Outlaw," said French.
Last year Griffon introduced the BroadSword XL, a 600+ lb. gross
weight version of the BroadSword MQM-171 developed for the US Army
7 years ago. BroadSword XL adds payload, fuel capacity, more wing
area, flaps, wing structure for pylons, and landing gear.
“One of our strategic goals is for Griffon to offer
reasonably priced UAS solutions up to the 600 pound gross weight
class priced far less than anything in the weight class,”
French said. Griffon’s “Boomer” or ER can be
equipped with an array of payloads and sensors including gimbaled
camera systems for airborne surveillance. The company is pursuing
opportunities requiring affordable UASs for both military and
emerging commercial applications.
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