Arthur McMiler
Drone technology company Red Cat announced Tuesday that it had been selected by the U.S. Army as the winner of the Short Range Reconnaissance program of record. The contract award features a five-year period of performance and calls for the production of 5,880 next-generation small unmanned aircraft systems developed by Teal, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Red Cat.
According to Red Cat Chief Technology Officer George Matus, the systems to be produced comprise the Black Widow sUAS and the Warfighter Electronic Bridge ground control station. Matus, who is also the founder of Teal, added, “The long-awaited production selection marks a new era for our company and the future of American drones.”
For his part, Red Cat CEO Jeff Thompson said, “It is an honor to support the U.S. Army by delivering the Black Widow to our warfighters. We believe this advanced technology will enable the Army to shape the battlefield, save soldiers’ lives, and serve as a powerful tool in their arsenal.”
“This long-term contract will give us the capability to continue to improve the Black Widow, scale production and improve margins,” Thompson added.
The Army production selection was made after Teal’s sUAS passed testing and evaluation by the Army Project Management Office for Uncrewed Aircraft Systems, Army Maneuver Battle Lab, Army Test and Evaluation Command and Army Operational Test Center.
The Army and the Defense Innovation Unit selected Teal in March 2022 to participate in SRR’s Tranche 2 after the company developed and demonstrated its Golden Eagle sUAS under the SRR Tranche 1 program in 2021.
