K-MAX Makes First Unmanned Flight in Afghanistan

K-MAX Makes First Unmanned Flight in Afghanistan:

It’s been years in the making, but the Marines are inching ever closer to using unmanned aircraft to supply their grunts in the field. On December 15^th and 16^th, the Corps flew two unmanned K-MAX test flights “out to one of the forward operating bases without a load,” Lockheed Martin’s Jeffrey Brown says. “These flights were test flights in preparation for sustained operations.”

Built as a joint venture between Kaman Aerospace and Lockheed Martin, the K-MAX passed a five-day Quick Reaction Assessment for the U.S. Navy’s Cargo Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) program earlier this year—where it exceeded the Navy and Marines’ requirement to deliver 6,000 pounds of cargo per day over a five-day period—after which the Marines delivered two helicopters to Afghanistan for operational testing. You can read the whole story over at Aviation Week. (Subscription required.)

For what it’s worth, the Army has also been interested in checking out what the K-MAX can do, so as the Marines continue to prove it out, you can bet that other interested parties are watching.