[Global Times Report] The US "Defense News" said on the 12th that the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) planned the "UAV Mothership" project that has encountered major setbacks, and it has conducted nine consecutive UAV recovery tests in recent days. Failed.
U.S. C-130 transport aircraft flies next to the X-61A UAV.
reported that the project plans to use transport aircraft as an air carrier for UAVs. Through mass release and recovery of UAVs, the goal of targeting the enemy will be achieved. Smart swarm" attack or reconnaissance. In November 2019, DARPA launched the X-61A "Elf" drone from a C-130A transport aircraft for the first time in a demonstration held at the Dugway Test Range in Utah. The two-hour flight test went well, but everything went well. An error in the final recovery phase caused the drone to crash. Beginning on October 28 this year, DARPA once again launched a new round of testing for the project. The transport plane tried to extend the robotic arm, dock with the drone in the air, and then grab it back into the cargo hold, but it was unsuccessful for 9 consecutive times, although " Each docking is only a few inches away", but "achieving this goal may be easier said than done."
However, DARPA stated that “the challenges encountered are not insurmountable”, and the data obtained from the experiment will help the interaction between the drone and the robotic arm to improve it.
