• Uncrewed Vehicles

  USAF announces Swarm and Search AI Challenge

  25th January 2019

  The US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and the UK’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl), in collaboration with Wright Brothers Institute and University of …

• Digital Battlespace

  BAE Systems signs GaN agreement

  21st September 2018

  BAE Systems and the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) have signed a cooperative agreement for Phase 1 of a technical effort to transition gallium …

• Military Logistics

  AFRL extends serviceability of hydraulic lines

  31st August 2018

  The US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) recently completed an effort to help develop, test and validate a cold spray coating process for the life …

• Defence Helicopter

  ​Aerojet Rocketdyne tests new solid rocket motor

  10th August 2018

  Aerojet Rocketdyne has test fired a new solid rocket motor at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Edwards Air Force Base in California. The …

• Military Logistics

  AFRL experiments with artificial silk for body armour

  8th August 2018

  The US Air Force (USAF) Research Laboratory (AFRL) and Purdue University are experimenting to develop a functional fibre that can be woven into sizeable, flexible …

• Digital Battlespace

  Altamira receives RF contract from AFRL

  12th July 2018

  Altamira Technologies has received the US Air Force Research Laboratory’s (AFRL) $24.6 million distributed radio frequency sensing (DRS) contract to provide next-gen radio frequency (RF) …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Pressure on Pentagon for MUM-T solutions

  11th July 2018

  In the Pentagon's bid to race ahead with new technology development, the Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) is joining forces with the other services to …

• Digital Battlespace

  USAF and MIT further waveform development

  24th May 2018

  The US Air Force (USAF) Research Laboratory (AFRL) Information Directorate and Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory (MIT-LL) are working together to test advanced waveforms …

• Defence Helicopter

  Leidos to provide sensor technology to AFRL

  15th January 2018

  Leidos has been awarded a contract by the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to provide sensor technology under the Electro-Optical Combined Hyperspectral Imaging, Infrared …

• Defence Notes

  Lockheed to develop fibre laser for AFRL

  10th November 2017

  Lockheed Martin has received a $26.3 million contract from the US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to design and produce a high-power fibre laser, the …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AFRL testing highly-efficient diesel aircraft engine

  15th August 2017

  The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Advanced Power Technology Office has completed a ground test series on a new highly-efficiency diesel aircraft engine, the US …

• Training

  Paris Air Show: UK leads the way in synthetic wrap

  22nd June 2017

  Following the award of a $35 million Area Weapons Effects Simulation (AWES) upgrade contract to Cubic Global Defense earlier this year by the UK MOD, …

• Digital Battlespace

  EW Europe: US explores high-power electromagnetics

  30th May 2017

  EW and cyber operations are increasingly considered part of a larger whole and in the foreseeable future could be joined by High Power Electromagnetic (HPEM) …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  AUVSI 2017: Air Force unveils cross-domain UAS community

  11th May 2017

  As part of its search for synergies across the broad UAS user community the US Air Force is attempting to establish a broad 'community of …

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Lockheed, USAF demo manned/unmanned teaming

  12th April 2017

  Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works, the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), US Air Force (USAF) Test Pilot School and Calspan Corporation have carried out a successful …

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  Bandit (US)

  Programme Background Goal As stated by Alyson Turri, the AFRL Bandit programme manager, the goal is to "develop an unmanned platform that looks like a fifth-generation ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Off Board Sensing Station (OBSS) [USA]

  Programme Background What is OBSS? The USAF envisages OBSS as an attributable, low-cost and modular manned-unmanned teaming (MUM-T) platform with similar capabilities to Skyborg, a programme ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  ALUAV (India)

  Programme Background  Origins The development programme has its origins in the US-India Defence Technology and Trade Initiative signed between the nations in 2006 and renewed in 2015. ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - small

  ALUAV (US)

  Programme Background  Origins The development programme has its origins in the US-India Defence Technology and Trade Initiative signed between the nations in 2006 and renewed in 2015. ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Skyborg [USA]

  Programme Background Programme Intention Skyborg is one of three USAF Vanguard programs outlined in the Air Force Science and Technology 2030 initiative. The program intends ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Data links

  QNT

  The QUINT Networking Technology (QNT) programme is intended to develop robust, affordable, miniature networked data link technologies suitable for use on weapons and by tactical ...

• Data links

  TTNT

  The Tactical Targeting Network Technology (TTNT) programme is intended to develop, evaluate and demonstrate reconfigurable, affordable, robust, interoperable and evolvable communications technologies to support emerging ...

• Subsystems: software

  SWARM

  CHI Systems worked with Lockheed Martin on a programme for the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to build software models that imitate human behaviour, and ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing

  XQ-67A

  In February 2024, GA-ASI first released images of the XQ-67A, a drone developed as part of a contract to support the USAF's Off-Board Sensing Station ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Demogorgon

  In late October 2021, the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) awarded Kratos Unnamed Systems Division an initial $17.68 million 12-month cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to develop an Off-Board Sensing ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  ULTRA

  The Unmanned Long-endurance Tactical Reconnaissance Aircraft (ULTRA) is a fixed-wing drone from DZYNE Technologies.  It is described as a long-endurance, GPS-harded intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance platform with full ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - tactical

  XRQ-73

  The US Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) unveiled the flying design of the XRQ-73 in June 2024. The aircraft has been developed under the  Series ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  XQ-58 Valkyrie

  The XQ-58 Valkyrie is a high-altitude, long-endurance, runway-independent, high-subsonic 'Loyal Wingman' UAS developed jointly by Kratos and the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) to be used in ...

• Military UAS - fixed-wing, Military UAS - MALE

  Gambit (Series)

  The Gambit Series are five UAV variants based around the Gambit Core, a common system containing the platform's hardware: landing gear, baseline avionics, chassis, and other essential functions. ...

• Air Force Test Center

  The Air Force Test Center at Edwards AFB, California, is Air Force Materiel Command's centre of excellence for research, development, test and evaluation of aerospace ...