Bell has unveiled a full-scale mock-up of the V-247 Vigilant unmanned aerial system at Modern Day Marine Expo 2018, on 25 September.
The next-generation vertical take-off and landing unmanned system displaying at Quantico Marine Corps Base in Quantico, during the 2018 Modern Day Marine Exposition.
According to the Bell’s statement, the Bell V-247 Vigilant unmanned system is an armed escort in multi-domain operations, providing counter integrated air defense, electronic warfare, early warning, and precision fires.
The Vigilant unmanned system will combine unparalleled capability with unprecedented flexibility to execute a wide array of missions, including ISR, escort, or persistent fire missions – all with the benefits of extended endurance with modular mission packages.
The V-247 can accompany any asset into contested territory, providing protection, early warning, or interdiction. Autonomous flight capability of new Bell’s unmanned system is provides added flexibility to the escorted crew chief, allowing for the re-tasking of ISR sensors.
Perform day or night as a picket, providing an extended line for sea or land-based assets and giving advanced warning to commanders, and can likewise be armed due to the platform’s air-to-air missile capability.
The V-247 Vigilant can be armed with air-to-ground missiles and other precision munitions. An electro optical system and targeting system provide superior target identification and designation. Also, the modular payload system is designed to accommodate a variety of packages.
Specifications
| SPEEDS | ||
| Long Range Cruise | 240 kts | |
| Cruise at Maximum Continuous Power | 300+ kts | |
| Best Endurance | 178 kts | |
| PAYLOAD | ||
| Internal Mission | 2000 lb | |
| Sling Load | 9000 lb | |
| PERFORMANCE | ||
| >11 hours Time on Stations with 600 ib of Mission Payload at 450 nm Mission Radius | ||
| Up to 1400 nm Mission Radius or 17 hrs Time on Station | ||
| Up to 1400 nm Mission Radius or 17 hrs Time on Station | 25,000 ft | |
| OPERATIONAL VIABILITY | ||
| • Superior range and speed to provide escort capability for the V-22 or V-280 | ||
| • 24-hour Persistent Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance with a Two-Aircraft System | ||
| • Open Architecture Modular Payload System | ||
| • Guided Missile Destroyer Shipboard Compatible | ||
| • Retractable Taildragger Landing Gear | ||
| • Shipboard Footprint Equivalent to UH-1Y | ||
| • Aerial Refuel Capable | ||