Blue Bear Contracted as Pivotal Team Member for the Northrop Grumman Hybrid Airship Development

Blue Bear Systems Research (BBSR), has been selected as a key member of the Northrop Grumman/Hybrid Air Vehicles team to develop a hybrid airship to assist allied forces in Afghanistan. The work comes as part of an unprecedented US Department of Defence contract to develop a Long Endurance Multi-intelligence Vehicle (LEMV).

Read More on LEMV and Hybrid Air Vehicles

The LEMV will carry state of the art sensors to gather intelligence and provide a persistent “eye-in-the-sky” over Afghanistan’s most dangerous territories. The aircraft, a ‘hybrid airship’, produces lift form buoyancy like an airship, and from forward flight like an aeroplane. This unique configuration enables intelligence gathering missions of up to 3-weeks at 20,000ft. The LEMV is set for in theatre operational trials within only 18 months.

The rapid development of such an unusual aircraft requires a novel approach to automatic flight control and systems integration. Blue Bear Systems were selected for the role based on a proven ability to innovate and rapidly provide effective solutions for demanding aerospace projects. Under contract to Hybrid Air Vehicles BBSR will deliver:

• Critical vehicle management and flight control algorithms
• Flight demonstrator trials to de-risk full-scale development
• Aircraft modelling and flight simulation
• Essential systems integration supp