AUSA ANNUAL EXPOSITION, WASHINGTON DC – 6 October 2008 – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI), a leading manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and tactical reconnaissance radars, along with its “Team Sky Warrior” partners AAI Corporation and L-3 Communication Systems-West, today announced the successful first-attempted automatic takeoffs and landings of a Sky Warrior® UAS controlled from the AAI-developed Extended Range/Multi-Purpose (ER/MP) One System® Ground Control Station (OSGCS). Three automatic landings were successfully executed at GA-ASI’s El Mirage Flight Operations Center in Adelanto, Calif., on August 29, followed by three successful automatic takeoffs on September 26. GA-ASI’s Sky Warrior aircraft was under full line-of-sight command and control through the L-3 Communication Systems-West Tactical Common Data Link (TCDL). Automatic takeoff and landing utilizing TCDL represents a significant technical advancement in ER/MP UAS Program development and an important step in the maturation of diverse technologies prior to fielding the system, which is expected in July 2009.

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AFA AIR & SPACE, WASHINGTON DC – 15 September 2008 – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI), a leading manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and tactical reconnaissance radars, today provided an update on recent accomplishments of its Predator®-series UAS family, noting the achievement of numerous historical milestones. Key milestones are as follows:

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SAN DIEGO, Sept. 2, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) is on track for the first flight of its revolutionary Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) demonstrator for the U.S. Navy’s Unmanned Combat Air System Carrier Demonstration (UCAS-D) program. The first of two X-47B carrier demonstration system air vehicles is well over 50 percent complete and ahead of its build schedule, enabling this first flight in November 2009, just over 24 months from initial contract award. This is a historical step toward operating an unmanned combat aircraft aboard a Navy aircraft carrier.

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PALMDALE, Calif., September 3rd, 2008 — Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] has successfully demonstrated the Intelligent Control and Autonomous Re-planning of Unmanned Systems (ICARUS) suite of technologies as part of an exercise conducted August 12-14. The Edge Command and Control/Hybrid Operations (ECC/HO) week-long exercise was conducted at the Naval Air Station Oceana Dam Neck Annex, Dam Neck, Va. The exercise was part of the Navy Network Warfare Command’s annual TRIDENT WARRIOR 08 technology insertion demonstration and was attended by representatives from numerous Navy commands.

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Washington – U.S. Customs and Border Protection has deployed the Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) Predator B to support the response and recovery efforts of Hurricane Gustav. CBP launched its Predator B this morning at 8 a.m. to provide live streaming video to damage assessment personnel. Launched from Corpus Christi, Texas, the Predator B was piloted by trained Air and Marine agents from Sierra Vista, Ariz. The UAS surveyed levee conditions to detect damage and identify post-event trouble spots and supported search and rescue personnel by providing live streaming video to federal, state and local officials.

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SAN DIEGO, Sept. 2, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) prepares to move forward with selective demonstrations after conducting the first flight of its company-owned MQ-8B Fire Scout Vertical Unmanned Air System (VUAS) designated as “P6.” The flight was conducted at the Webster Field Annex portion of Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. P6 is part an on-going effort to expand upon the development capabilities of the MQ-8B Fire Scout. “The first flight of P6 is a significant milestone showing that the company-owned MQ-8B Fire Scout is ready to support system demonstrations with a variety of payloads. We look forward to the opportunity to use our modular mission payload architecture to accelerate the integration and evaluation of payloads while performing mission demonstrations,” said Rick Crooks, Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems P6 program manager.

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On Aug. 7, 2008, Defence Minister Peter MacKay announced the Government’s plan to fulfill the recommendations and conditions of the “Manley Report,” one of which was to secure high performance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) before February 2009. The plan includes:

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SAN DIEGO – 25 August 2008 – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), a leading manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and tactical reconnaissance radars, today announced that the company has been ranked as Best-in-Class for “Valuing the Individual” in AVIATION WEEK’s 2008 Workforce Study. The annual study, which represents 79-percent of U.S. aerospace and defense (A&D) workers, takes an industry-wide look at the current state of the A&D workforce, with responses to specific questions resulting in an assessment of how companies are meeting employees’ basic requirements in several key categories.

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Hunt Valley, MD - August 26, 2008 - AAI Corporation, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron Inc. (NYSE: TXT) company, announced today that its family of Training Aids, Devices, Simulators, and Simulations (TADSS) has been selected to support training for Army National Guard units operating the RQ-7B Shadow Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems (TUAS). Awarded by the U.S. Army’s Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training, and Instrumentation in Orlando, Fla., the initial order, valued at $11.9 million, includes 25 high fidelity Shadow Crew Trainers (SCT) and interactive multimedia instruction. Including four option years, the contract has a total potential value of $31.1 million. AAI produces and supports a complete family of advanced tactical unmanned aircraft systems, including Shadow systems flown by the U.S. Army, National Guard, and Marine Corps. Each Shadow Crew Trainer features two simulated One System Ground Control Stations, a role player, and a ground crew launch and recovery station controlled by an integrated instructor/operator station.

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QinetiQ’s Zephyr High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has exceeded the official world record time for the longest duration unmanned flight with a 54 hour flight achieved during trials at the US Military’s White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The flight trials were funded through the Ministry of Defence (MOD) research programme. The duration of the flight exceeded the current official FAI world record for unmanned flight which stands at 30 hours 24 minutes set by Northrop Grumman’s RQ-4A Global Hawk on 22 March 2001. However because there was no FAI official present at White Sands it may not stand as an official world record. Launched by hand, Zephyr is an ultra-lightweight carbon-fibre aircraft with a wingspan of up to 18 metres but weighing just 30 kg. By day it flies on solar power generated by amorphous silicon arrays no thicker than sheets of paper that cover the aircraft’s wings. By night it is powered by rechargeable lithium-sulphur batteries that are recharged during the day using solar power.

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SAN DIEGO, Aug. 20, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The U.S. Navy is moving closer to conducting Technical Evaluation with its Northrop Grumman Corporation-developed (NYSE:NOC) MQ-8B Fire Scout Vertical Takeoff and Landing Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (VTUAV). The Fire Scout recently completed its first flight with the BRITE Star II(r) electro-optical/infrared payload using a Tactical Common Data Link (TCDL). The flight took place on Aug. 9, 2008 at Webster Field, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. “Starting payload integration and data link flight testing is a major milestone for the VTUAV program,” said Doug Fronius, MQ-8B Fire Scout VTUAV program director for Northrop Grumman’s Integrated Systems sector. “Completing the first series of payload and TCDL flights brings the entire VTUAV system into flight test and puts Fire Scout one step closer to shipboard integration and testing.”

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Team Stellar has won the MOD’s Grand Challenge competition, producing the best system to identify threats encountered by UK troops on current operations. Team Stellar were announed as the winners today, Tuesday 19 August 2008. They beat off six others who qualified for the final competition to win the RJ Mitchell Trophy - named after the designer of the Spitfire which earned legendary status for its decisive role in the Battle of Britain. Their entry, SATURN - an integrated system with one high flying and one mini UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle), and a UGV (Unmanned Ground Vehicle) with a control station fusing data from visual, thermal and radar sensors - gave them the competition edge.

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SAN DIEGO, Aug. 14, 2008 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center has awarded a five-year contract to Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) for engineering and technical services to support NASA’s use of Global Hawk unmanned aircraft for Earth science research. The contract supports NASA’s planned operation of two Global Hawk aircraft, their associated ground control station and related systems. Northrop Grumman’s technical assistance will include analysis, design support for unique systems, simulations, software development and engineering, and operational and manufacturing support. The indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity, sole-source contract has a value of up to $25 million. Under a Space Act Agreement signed in April 2008, NASA and Northrop Grumman are bringing to flight two pre-production Global Hawk air vehicles for NASA research activities. NASA will use the autonomously operated unmanned aircraft for missions supporting its Science Mission Directorate and the Earth science community that require high-altitude, long-endurance, long-distance airborne capability.

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NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center has awarded a multi-year contract to Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Integrated Systems Division of San Diego for engineering and technical services in support of the center’s planned operation of two Global Hawk aircraft. The indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity, sole-source contract is for a five-year period with a value not to exceed $25 million. The agreement covers the period from Aug. 6, 2008 through Aug. 5, 2013. The contract supports Dryden’s planned operation of the two aircraft, their associated ground control station and related systems. Technical assistance will include analysis, design support for unique systems, simulations, software development and engineering, and operational and manufacturing support as needed.

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QinetiQ, working in partnership with Aberystwyth University’s new biosciences centre IBERS, has successfully completed the UK’s first flight of an autonomous unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) for agricultural monitoring. The flight was the culmination of phase one of the pioneering U-MAP programme, a project supported by the Welsh Assembly Government. U-MAP (UAVs for Managing Agricultural Practice) has demonstrated the feasibility of using a UAV to deliver high resolution images to the agricultural, forestry and environmental monitoring sectors. Farmers and foresters increasingly need accurate and timely information on the state of the land they occupy. For example by mapping the fertiliser requirements of arable crops, farmers can ensure they only apply the precise amount of fertiliser required, saving them money and preventing the pollution that occurs when nitrate fertilisers are over-applied.

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ST. LOUIS, Aug. 06, 2008 — The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA], Goodrich Corporation and Insitu Inc. have successfully flight-tested a ScanEagle unmanned aircraft equipped for the first time with a short-wave infrared (SWIR) camera. The camera, built by Goodrich’s Sensors Unlimited Inc. unit, enables ScanEagle operators to see objects more clearly in fog, rain or when little or no heat is radiated. During recent tests at the Fort Leonard Wood test range in Missouri, the camera recorded clear, streaming video during daytime, twilight and nighttime operations. The Boeing-led team, which integrated the camera in less than 14 weeks, plans additional flight tests later this year. “The idea for the SWIR camera arose to meet our customers’ growing maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) needs,” said Don Iverson, Boeing ScanEagle Naval Programs manager. “The SWIR camera is particularly useful when there is fog or rain and conventional electro-optical and long-wave infrared cameras are severely limited.”

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Experts from across the aviation industry have come together to test the ground systems which may one day be used to operate unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), including autonomous UAVs, in UK skies. The exercises are being completed by Thales UK, as part of a project involving QinetiQ and the University of the West of England for the ASTRAEA programme. ASTRAEA is working with the Civil Aviation Authority to develop the regulations and techniques that will permit the use of UAVs in unrestricted UK airspace. Following significant progress in the development of a ground control station, the latest tests have gathered feedback from those with extensive flight experience to ensure that the control station provides users with the right information to oversee and control a UAV effectively and safely. CAA test pilots, a microlight pilot, an ex-military navigator and an air traffic controller have all taken part in the exercises, which involved them taking control of a mock UAV reconnaissance mission using the current ground station software set-up and a flight simulator.

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SAN DIEGO, July 22, 2008 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) — The U.S. Navy’s RQ-4 Block 10 Global Hawk Maritime Demonstration (GHMD) unmanned aircraft system demonstrated its flexibility and persistence by providing critically needed imagery to firefighters during the recent Northern California wildfires. Built by Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC), GHMD flew more than 23 hours June 27-28 and collected more than 500 images for local fire officials. “The flexibility of the GHMD team to rapidly shift gears from a planned maritime mission to a domestic humanitarian mission surpassed many expectations, by responding so quickly and providing high resolution images for the firefighting commanders,” said Dave Seagle, GHMD program lead for the Persistent Maritime Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Office (PMA-262) at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. “GHMD’s capabilities and versatility to support this mission may have ultimately helped save lives and homes, and that is extremely gratifying to our GHMD team.”

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ST. LOUIS, July 22, 2008 — The Boeing Company [NYSE: BA] today announced an agreement to acquire Insitu, Inc., a pioneer in the unmanned air systems (UAS) market and leader in the design, development and manufacture of high-performance, low-cost UAS used for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). Boeing and Insitu have partnered since 2002 and together developed the successful ScanEagle™ UAS program, which has more than 100,000 operational flight hours with the U.S. Department of Defense and international customers. Insitu’s key technologies and advanced capabilities in rapid prototyping and manufacturing are driving its revenue to an anticipated $150 million this year, 70 percent higher than in 2007, and have it well positioned for the future.

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A team, led by a number of recently qualified engineers and scientists from QinetiQ’s Cortex early career training scheme, has entered an innovative and highly versatile unmanned air vehicle (UAV) for the MOD’s Grand Challenge – a competition designed to encourage younger engineers and scientists to champion the development of a system with a high degree of autonomy that can detect, identify, monitor and report a comprehensive range of military threats in an urban environment. QinetiQ’s Grand Challenge entry can take off vertically – so the operator is not exposed, and then transition into conventional flight to provide range and operational duration. This design means that, in addition to being used as a ‘conventional’ UAV, it can go into hover mode or be landed to function as an unattended ground sensor. The sensor and imaging payload can be pre configured using a number of existing technologies to meet user requirements. It can remain on station and then take off again (unattended) and either be recovered back to base or continue to perform as a UAV or a ground sensor at another location.

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Cobham plc (Cobham) and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) are pleased to announce the creation of a Teaming Agreement to cover whole life support arrangements for UK Government GA-ASI products. This teaming arrangement will initially focus on the provision of support to the UK MoD MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aircraft system (UAS) currently in operation with the Royal Air Force (RAF) over Afghanistan. The Team will develop support solutions that could be used by the UK MoD to offer increased flexibility and sovereignty over existing arrangements. Andy Stevens, Chief Operating Officer Cobham said: “This Teaming Agreement enables us to apply all of the capabilities of our Aviation Services Division to deliver what could be a very important contribution to the UK MoD’s operational UAV capability. This also emphasises the importance of the UK Defence Industrial Strategy and the part that we can play in service provision to the MoD in partnership with GA-ASI. We look forward to working with our US partner to deliver such support services as the UK MoD may require.”

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FARNBOROUGH INTERNATIONAL AIR SHOW – 16 July 2008 – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI), a leading manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) and tactical reconnaissance radars, today announced that it successfully completed a weeklong series of Lynx® II production radar performance flight tests at the U.S. Army’s Yuma Proving Grounds (YPG) test range following radar improvements further boosting performance levels beyond System Development and Demonstration (SDD) requirements. GA-ASI originally developed the synthetic aperture radar with ground moving target indicator (SAR/ GMTI) for the Army’s Extended Range/Multi-Purpose (ER/MP) UAS Program and recently completed final delivery of SDD radars to the U.S. Army.

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PARSIPPANY, N.J., Jul 15, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) — DRS Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: DRS) announced today that it has received $56 million in follow-on contracts from the U.S. Army’s Aviation and Missile Command (AMCOM) at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Alabama, for support of Mast-Mounted Sights (MMS) on OH-58D Kiowa Warrior armed reconnaissance helicopters. The contracts cover spares, field-service and general depot-maintenance support, as well as implementation of an Engineering Change Proposal (ECP) for updating the MMS on these aircraft. Initially awarded to DRS in 2003, the total value of this five-year Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract has now surpassed $416 million. The work will be accomplished by the DRS Sensors & Targeting Systems - Optronics Division in Melbourne and Palm Bay, Florida, and covers deliveries and repairs through 2010.

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FARNBOROUGH, U.K.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–July 15, 2008–DRS Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: DRS) announced today that Aerotree Defence and Services Sdn. Bhd. Executive Director Dato’ Norida Hamzah signed a letter of intent for DRS to furnish a complete Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) system to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) in a meeting at the Farnborough Air Show, attended by the Malaysian Ministry of Defense Secretary General and the Royal Malaysian Air Force Chief of the Air Force. Aerotree is the prime contractor to the RMAF. The letter of intent reflects the parties’ mutual desire to enter into a definitive contract under which Aerotree would purchase the ACMI system for lease to the government of Malaysia. The contract would be managed by DRS Command, Control and Communication (C3) Systems in Fort Walton Beach, Florida

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EDWARDS, Calif. — A remotely piloted aircraft carrying a NASA sensor flew over much of California earlier this week, gathering information that will be used to help fight more than 300 wildfires burning within the state. Additional flights are planned for next week. The flights by NASA’s unmanned Ikhana aircraft are using a sophisticated Autonomous Modular Scanner developed at NASA’s Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif. The flights are originating from NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Ikhana’s onboard sensor can detect temperature differences from less than one-half degree to approximately 1,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The scanner operates like a digital camera with specialized filters to detect light energy at visible, infrared and thermal wavelengths. NASA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service have partnered to obtain imagery of the wildfires in response to requests from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services and the National Interagency Fire Center.

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