F/A-18 controls 3 UAVs in Boeing-Navy joint test
NewsJuly 18, 2022
ST. LOUIS, Missouri. Boeing and the U.S. Navy recently completed a series of flight tests in which a Block III F/A-18E/F Super Hornet controlled three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), Boeing said in a statement.
Boeing system engineers connected the Distributed Targeting Processor - Networked (DTP-N) with a third-party tablet to sync up the UAVs, using new software to allow it to transmit commands, the statement noted.
During the two-week testing period, F/A-18 pilots entered commands into the tablet, which were transmitted to the UAVs, allowing the pilot to control the drones.
Boeing says that the tests were meant to highlight the potential of unmanned systems to expand the Navy's capabilities and reach as part of a Joint All-Domain Command and Control network, which would involve teams of UAVs conducting intelligence missions led by Super Hornets.
