Date: 19 November, 2007
United Industrial Corporation announced today that its wholly owned subsidiary AAI Corporation has received an order from the U.S. Army for production of four additional Shadow 200 Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems (TUAS).
The total value of the four advanced Shadow systems, which the Army designates as RQ-7B systems, is US$ 39.2 million. Since December 1999, when the U.S. Army selected AAI to be the service’s TUAS prime contractor, the company has been awarded a series of contracts for the continued production of Shadow systems.
To date, 74 systems have been ordered, including 296 aircraft and 148 ground control stations. Each system is composed of four aircraft, two ground control stations, and other components. This new order extends system deliveries through January 2009.
Shadow production work is performed at AAI’s manufacturing facilities in Hunt Valley, Md. Worldwide, Shadow systems have flown more than 47,000 sorties and greater than 192,000 flight hours — more than 88% in support of U.S. and allied operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. In addition to the production and upgrade of Shadow systems, AAI provides performance-based logistics support and sustainment for fielded and deployed U.S.
Army TUAS units. AAI also manufactures a number of other unmanned aircraft systems, and the company is recognized for its design and development of advanced ground control stations and interoperable network technologies. For example, AAI produces Aerosonde unmanned aircraft systems for an array of scientific and civil aviation uses.
Customers include the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation, NASA, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States, and the Meteorological Institutes of Japan and Korea. In addition, the One System ground control station, designed and produced by AAI, is compatible and interoperable with multiple unmanned aircraft systems, including Shadow, Pioneer, Hunter, Fire Scout, the Army’s new Extended Range/Multi-Purpose system and AAI’s Aerosonde.