Northrop Grumman has been awarded a US$10.8m (A$11.7m) contract to develop an electronic warfare payload for its MQ-8C Fire Scout vertical takeoff unmanned aerial system (VTUAS).
The contract provides for initial work to develop and integrate the Multi Capability Pod (MCAP) onto the Fire Scout to provide “multiple electronic warfare sensors for employment in the littorals,” and provides funding for two MCAP pods and one MCAP mass model for flight trials.
The MQ-8C is an unmanned development of the Bell 407 helicopter, and has an endurance of over 10 hours with a 317 kg payload. The US Navy currently has contracts for 28 MQ-8Cs.
