AFWERX Awards Contract to Develop Long-Range Cargo Drone

Silent Arrow will scale up its cargo drone technology for a variant capable of carrying 1,000 pounds of payload a distance of more than 300 nm.

Kimberly Johnson

Monday, December 18, 2023 at 04:11 PM ET

Verified

The Silent Arrow GD-2000 will be scaled up and fitted with an innovative propulsion system to extend the flight range by a factor of 10x. [Courtesy: Silent Arrow]

Key Takeaways:

Silent Arrow has been awarded a Phase 1 contract by AFWERX (U.S. Air Force) to develop long-range cargo delivery drones for contested environments.
The contract will scale Silent Arrow's GD-2000 cargo drone into the CLS-300 variant, designed to carry 1,000 pounds over 300 nautical miles.
The CLS-300 will incorporate an "attritable" (disposable) propulsion unit, enabling self-takeoff from various locations, and is intended for military, humanitarian, and disaster relief operations.

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Autonomous cargo delivery aircraft firm Silent Arrow has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Air Force’s innovation arm, AFWERX, for the development of long-range cargo delivery drones in contested environments.

As part of the $75,000 Phase 1 contract, a feasibility study will be conducted, a spokesperson for the Air Force Research Laboratory told FLYING.