X-47B unmanned aircraft aboard the USS Harry S. Truman ship

The US Navy’s X-47B unmanned combat air system (UCAS) demonstrator has successfully completed first at-sea test phase aboard the eighth Nimitz-class nuclear powered aircraft carrier, the USS Harry S Truman (CVN 75).

Conducted at Naval Station Norfolk and off the coast of Virginia, the trials involved successful integration of the UCAS demonstrator with Truman’s flight deck using an arm-mounted control display unit (CDU), remotely controlling and moving over the arresting wire, to and from the catapults and to various spotting positions.

The strike-fighter-sized aircraft also conducted fuelling operations and had its digital engine controls tested within electromagnetic field surrounded environment.

The N-UCAS Program Office (PMA-268) programme manager Don Blottenberger said that the tests proved X-47B design and operation capability, as well as its compatibility with carrier’s flight deck, hangar bays and communication systems.

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"We proved that the X-47B air system is mature and can perform flawlessly in the most hostile electromagnetic environment on earth, a Nimitz-class navy aircraft carrier."

Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems UCAS-D programme director Mike Mackey said: "We proved that the X-47B air system is mature and can perform flawlessly in the most hostile electromagnetic environment on earth, a Nimitz-class navy aircraft carrier."

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Data collected throughout the two-week test period from the aircraft’s performance will contribute to future unmanned aviation programmes, Mackey added.

The tailless aircraft is scheduled to undergo further trials such as shore-based arrested landings at the Naval Air Station (NAS) Patuxent River, as well as use another carrier in mid-2013.

Carrier trials being conducted in spring 2013 will include landings and catapult launches, in addition to arrested landings and aerial refuelling tests.

The UCAS-D industry team comprises Pratt & Whitney, Lockheed Martin, GKN Aerospace, Eaton, General Electric, UTC Aerospace Systems, Dell, Honeywell, Moog, Wind River, Parker Aerospace and Rockwell Collins.

Image: US Navy’s X-47B unmanned aircraft aboard the USS Harry S. Truman ship. Photo: courtesy of Northrop Grumman Corp.