Jerry Petersen
The unmanned version of the Lakota UH-72 helicopter has been selected for inclusion in the first phase of the U.S. Marine Corps Aerial Logistics Connector program, The War Zone reported Tuesday.
The ALC program is one of three efforts being carried out by the Marine Corps to acquire aerial logistics drones that can be deployed in the future to support expeditionary and distributed operations.
ALC is currently in the prototyping phase, where participants are expected to demonstrate the capabilities of their aircraft via operational experiments. The UH-72 Unmanned Logistics Connector was added to the effort via a phase I Other Transactional Authority agreement awarded to Airbus U.S. Space & Defense by Naval Air Systems Command via the Naval Aviation Systems Consortium.
Rob Geckle, chairman and CEO of Airbus U.S. Space & Defense and a past Wash100 awardee, expressed eagerness to support the Marine Corps, adding, “Our unmanned UH-72 logistics connector leverages nearly two decades of U.S. military capability and offers Marines a versatile, affordable and enduring solution to address logistics missions around the globe.”
Three other companies have been chosen for ALC phase I but their identities have not been made clear.
