| X-61 Gremlins | |
|---|---|
 | |
| X-61A in flight | |
| Role | Experimental unmanned aerial vehicle |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Dynetics |
| First flight | November 2019 (captive) January 17, 2020 (free flight) |
| Introduction | 2019 |
| Primary user | DARPA |
| Produced | 2019–present |
| Number built | 5 |
The Dynetics X-61 Gremlins is an experimental unmanned aerial vehicle designed by Dynetics.
The X-61 stemmed from the DARPA Gremlins program to demonstrate a recoverable, low-cost UAV with digital flight controls and navigation systems. It is designed to be recovered in midair by a modified transport airplane following its mission. [1] Dynetics was one of four companies to be awarded a Phase I contract for the program in 2016, and was the winner of the Phase III contract in April 2018. [1]
The X-61A is powered by a Williams F107 turbofan engine and can carry a variety of payloads, including electro-optical sensors, infrared imagers, electronic warfare systems, and weapons. [1] [2] It was designed to be compatible with existing launch and ground support equipment. [1] The UAV is semi-autonomous, allowing a controller either in the mothership or on the ground to control up to eight X-61As at one time. [1] [2]
As of January 2020, five X-61A Gremlins have been built. [3] On July 5, 2019, an earthquake near China Lake damaged some of the first X-61A's test equipment, delaying the program. [2] The first captive flight of the X-61A on board a Lockheed C-130A Hercules mother ship was in November 2019. [1]
The first free flight of the X-61A was conducted on January 17, 2020. The flight was successful, however, the main parachute failed to deploy during the recovery and the aircraft was lost. [4] The four remaining vehicles are still operational. [5]
In August 2020 the company announced they had completed a second test flight, this time successfully recovering the aircraft by parachute. The flight lasted over two hours and included rendezvous and formation flight with the C-130 mother ship. [6]
In October 2021 DARPA announced that a specially equipped C-130 Hercules cargo plane had successfully recovered an X-61A from mid-air. [7]
Data from Airforce Technology and Flight Global [1] [2]
General characteristics
Performance
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