Puma 3 AE contract to support SUAS program
NewsApril 08, 2020
MONROVIA, Calif. AeroVironment, Inc, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) company, announced its receipt of a $10.6 million firm-fixed-price contract award for Puma 3 AE systems and spares on Feb. 18, 2020 for the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS) Program. Delivery is anticipated by April 2020.
According to the company, the AeroVironment Puma 3 AE is a man-portable unmanned aircraft system designed for land and maritime operations. The hand-launched Puma 3 AE has a wingspan of 9.2 feet (2.8 meters), weighs 15 pounds (6.8 kilograms), and can operate for up to 2.5 hours at a range of up to 12.4 miles (20 kilometers) with a standard antenna, and up to 37.2 miles (60 kilometers) with AeroVironment’s Long-Range Tracking Antenna (LRTA).
Designed to be capable of landing in water or on land, the all-environment Puma, with its Mantis i45 EO/IR sensor suite, is intended to provide the operator with extended flight time and high-quality imaging capability.
The company claims that AeroVironment’s family of small UAS comprises the majority of all unmanned aircraft in the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) inventory and its growing international customer base numbers more than 45 allied governments.
