ADF begins Wasp UAV training exercises
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has begun training exercises with the AeroVironment RQ-12 Wasp unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) as part of an army soldier modernisation trial.
AeroVironment supplied the RQ-12 Wasp to the ADF under an order received from XTEK, on behalf of the ADF, in December 2014.
The Wasp AE weighs 2.8lbs, operates for up to 50 minutes at a range of up to 5km and delivers live, streaming colour and infrared video from its pan-tilt-zoom Mantis i22 AE gimbaled payload. Launched by hand and capable of landing on the ground or in fresh or salt water, the system is designed to be portable and flexible enough for infantry, littoral or maritime reconnaissance operations.
Kirk Flittie, vice president and general manager of the UAS, AeroVironment, said: ‘The man packable Wasp AE unmanned aircraft system delivers powerful intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance on demand and directly to small tactical units or an individual warfighter.
‘Increasingly, allied forces around the world are deploying our small unmanned aircraft systems for valuable, real-time situational awareness to help them operate more safely and effectively.’
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