Recent NATO exercises in the waters off the coast of Portugal have revealed a new level of maritime drones. As part of the exercise, a BAE Systems/Malloy Aeronautics T-600 Uncrewed Aerial System (UAS) heavy lift vehicle launched an immobile Sting Ray training torpedo. The world’s major navies are showing great interest in unmanned aerial vehicles of all shapes and sizes. As they become more complex, they move into new areas, freeing up people for more important tasks.

Although it looks like a quadcopter used for shooting videos at first glance, the T-600 is the size of a compact car. It is an electric show vehicle that can be easily disassembled for transport, has a payload capacity of 200 kg (441 lb), a top speed of 140 km/h (87 mph) and a range of 80 km (50 mi).

As part of NATO’s Robotics Experimentation and Prototyping with Maritime Crewless Systems (REPMUS) 2023 exercise, the T-600 conducted a series of demonstrations to representatives of NATO countries, as well as Ireland and Sweden.

The highlight of these demonstrations was the shooting down of the anti-submarine training torpedo Sting Ray. This was the first time such a weapon had been used by an unmanned aerial vehicle as part of a naval mission. The aim was not only to demonstrate the T600’s anti-submarine capabilities, but also its potential for automated logistics, replenishment, casualty evacuation and other missions; It has relatively little environmental impact, but does not require a human pilot.

According to BAE Systems, the T-600 will form the basis for the all-new T-650 all-electric heavy-duty UAV with the ability to be rapidly reconfigured for military, commercial and humanitarian markets.

“In just two years since our collaboration with Malloy, we have developed a heavy-lift UAV and participated in the latest NATO exercise REPMUS, working with the Royal Navy of Great Britain and the Portuguese Navy,” said Managing Director Neil Appleton. Sustainability. Electrical Products, BAE Systems Air. “The demonstration demonstrated the capabilities of our T-600 technology demonstrator carrying the inert Sting Ray torpedo in front of the world’s leading navies.” Source