General Atomics XQ-67A UAV Makes First Flight

The Air Force Research Laboratory-funded drone project aims to cut costs by building several aircraft variants from a common core chassis.

Kimberly Johnson

Tuesday, March 05, 2024 at 04:08 PM ET

Verified

AFRL’s XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station, or OBSS, designed and built by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., took its maiden flight February 28 from Gray Butte Field Airport near Palmdale, California. [Courtesy: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc.]

Key Takeaways:

The Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL)-funded XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station (OBSS) experimental UAV has successfully completed its maiden flight.
This aircraft is the first to be built using a "common core chassis" or "genus" approach, enabling commonality and rapid replication across multiple vehicle types.
The innovative design strategy aims to reduce development time and costs, facilitate faster technology refreshes, and ultimately produce affordable combat mass.

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An experimental unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) funded by the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and designed with a common chassis to be affordable and rapidly replicated has taken its first flight.

The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc.’s (GA-ASI) XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station (OBSS) made its maiden flight last week from Gray Butte Field Airport near Palmdale, California, where it completed several tests.