Army Readies Full Deployment of UAS Quadcopter With Completion of First Fielding at Fort Campbell

The U.S. Army’s Project Management Office for Uncrewed Aircraft Systems is preparing to field across the service branch the tranche 1 of the Short Range Reconnaissance uncrewed aircraft system, following the first SRR delivery to the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell in Kentucky. 

The Army’s Small UAS Product Office provided the 101st soldiers with training on the service branch’s first fielded UAS quadcopter, which features advanced sensors to enable real-time reconnaissance and target acquisition capabilities. The SUAS office expects to complete SRR’s tranche 1 deployment across the Army in 2024, DVIDS reported Monday.

Col. Danielle Medaglia, PM UAS project manager, pointed out that swift UAS delivery is essential to ensure the operational advantage of Army units on the battlefield as rapid technological advancements are changing combat dynamics.

For the SRR tranche 2 system, the Army is looking at a UAS with better autonomy, a new controller and a modular open design ready for the rapid integration of new technologies. 

Skydio, one of the companies involved in the Army’s SRR Tranche 2, is working on X10D, a small UAS with a NightSense feature, enabling it to fly around obstacles in zero-light environments. Red Cat Holdings, another Tranche 2 contractor, will integrate Teledyne FLIR’s Prism artificial intelligence platform into the Army’s next-generation SRR drone.