HAWK30 Takes Flight - AeroVironment Achieves Successful First Test Flight of Next Generation Solar HAPS Unmanned Aircraft Sys...
September 16 2019 - 9:10AM
Business Wire
- Successful first test flight takes place less than two years
after program start
- Test program to expand operating envelope with sequentially
higher and longer flights
AeroVironment, Inc. (NASDAQ:AVAV), a global leader in Unmanned
Aircraft Systems (UAS) for both defense and commercial
applications, announced the successful first flight of the HAWK30
solar HAPS unmanned aircraft system on September 11, 2019 at the
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center in California. AeroVironment
partnered with SoftBank Corp (TOKYO:9434) to create HAPSMobile
Inc., the joint venture funding HAWK30 design development and
demonstration.
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HAWK30 solar HAPS unmanned aircraft
system takes flight for the first time at NASA Armstrong Flight
Research Center in California (Photo: Business Wire)
“The first flight of HAWK30 builds on more than two decades of
pioneering HAPS technology development and demonstration by the
AeroVironment team, and comes only two years since SoftBank joined
us in this endeavor,” said Wahid Nawabi, AeroVironment president
and chief executive officer. “We are the pioneer and leader in
HAPS, delivering continued progress and demonstrated success. We
look forward to achieving even greater success in flight testing,
culminating in high-altitude, long-endurance flight demonstrations
that will pave the way for the global commercialization of HAPS
technology.
“We are grateful for the expertise and support from NASA’s
outstanding team at the Armstrong Flight Research Center. We are
proud to add another milestone to their storied history of aviation
innovation,” Nawabi added.
Developed and assembled in AeroVironment’s HAPS Innovation
Center, the HAWK30 has a wingspan of approximately 260 feet and is
propelled by 10 electric motors powered by solar panels covering
the surface of the wing, resulting in zero emissions. Flying at an
altitude of approximately 65,000 feet above sea level and above the
clouds, the HAWK30 is designed for continuous, extended missions of
up to months without landing.
AeroVironment seeks to create value from its unique HAPS
intellectual property and capabilities in multiple ways:
participating in the anticipated growth of the HAPSMobile joint
venture as one of its two owners; generating customer-funded
research and development revenue as the exclusive developer of
solar HAPS for HAPSMobile through the design, development and
demonstration phases of the program; manufacturing and supplying
HAPS UAS to HAPSMobile; supporting and maintaining a deployed fleet
of HAPS systems; and marketing and selling HAPS UAS to
non-commercial customers globally, with the exception of Japan.
AeroVironment pioneered the concept of high-altitude
solar-powered UAS in the 1980s, and developed and demonstrated
multiple systems for NASA’s Environmental Research Aircraft and
Sensor Technology, or ERAST program, in the late 1990s and early
2000s. In August 2001, the AeroVironment Helios prototype reached
an altitude of 96,863 feet, setting the world-record for sustained
horizontal flight by a winged aircraft. In 2002, the AeroVironment
Pathfinder Plus prototype performed the world’s first UAS
telecommunications demonstrations at 65,000 feet by providing
high-definition television (HDTV) signals, third-generation (3G)
mobile voice, video and data and high-speed internet
connectivity.
About AeroVironment, Inc.
AeroVironment (NASDAQ: AVAV) provides customers with more
actionable intelligence so they can proceed with certainty. Based
in California, AeroVironment is a global leader in unmanned
aircraft systems and tactical missile systems, and serves defense,
government, and commercial customers. For more information visit
www.avinc.com.
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"forward-looking statements" as that term is defined in the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are made
on the basis of current expectations, forecasts and assumptions
that involve risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited
to, economic, competitive, governmental and technological factors
outside of our control, that may cause our business, strategy or
actual results to differ materially from those expressed or
implied. Factors that could cause actual results to differ
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190916005306/en/
AeroVironment, Inc. Steven Gitlin +1 (805) 520-8350
pr@avinc.com
Mark Boyer For AeroVironment, Inc. +1 (310) 229-5956
mark@boyersyndicate.com
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