One of three bidders has confirmed its departure from a competition to develop a 50kg (110lb) ducted-fan unmanned air vehicle for the US military. BAE Systems says the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has eliminated it from the Organic Air Vehicle Class II (OAV-II) programme.
The other contenders are Aurora Flight Sciences and Honeywell. DARPA declines to comment on the status of the OAV-II downselect, saying contracts for the 15-month second phase have not been announced. BAE is known to have been testing a 45kg vehicle since early 2004.
Aurora is proposing the Goldeneye ducted fan and is understood to have succeeded in transitioning from vertical to horizontal flight in a recent test. Honeywell has based its proposal on the ducted-fan iSTAR design formerly owned by Allied Aerospace.
Source: Flight International