Video of Fire Scout operations in Afghanistan has just been released by Naval Air Systems Command.
Established in 1966 as the successor to the Navy’s Bureau of Naval Weapons, the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) is headquartered in Patuxent River, Md., with military and civilian personnel stationed at eight locations across the continental United States and one site overseas.
NAVAIR’s mission is to provide full life-cycle support of naval aviation aircraft, weapons and systems operated by Sailors and Marines. This support includes research, design, development, and systems engineering; acquisition; test and evaluation; training facilities and equipment; repair and modification; and in-service engineering and logistics support.
The Fire Scout VTUAV system is comprised of up to three MQ-8B Fire Scout air vehicles, ground control stations, and associated control handling and support equipment. The VTUAV system will provide a significant improvement to organic surveillance capability. With vehicle endurance greater than five hours, a VTUAV system will be capable of twelve continuous hours of operations providing coverage 110 nautical miles from the launch site. The air vehicle is capable of providing UHF/VHF voice communications relay and has a baseline payload that includes electro-optical/infrared sensors and a laser designator that enables the system to find tactical targets, track and designate targets, accurately provide targeting data to strike platforms and perform battle damage assessment.
The air vehicle component of the VTUAV system was designated the MQ-8B to reflect the Fire Scout’s evolution toward an increased, multi-functional role. Some of the notable improvements include increased power, fuel, and payload capacity. The MQ-8B completed first flight in December 2006. When operational, Fire Scout will provide critical situational awareness, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and targeting data to the forward deployed warfighter. The vehicle is based on the Schweizer Aircraft model 330 helicopter.
