TechnologyNovel UAV design combines VTOL, conventional aircraft capabilities

Vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft has many advantages, but high speed is not one of them. This is one reason why the U.S. military persisted in pursuing the doomed V-22 Osprey program, despite the many failures and accidents which accompanied the program.”

How, then, can a UAV be developed which can quickly move from target to target yet loiter leisurely as a fixed and stable platform, all the while operating with no launch and retrieval infrastructure? Monrovia, California-based Aerovironment believes it has the answer in an innovative configuration it calls the Skytote. The SkyTote uses dual counter rotating propellers which will take off and land vertically as a helicopter, but also transition into horizontal flight as a conventional aircraft for efficient point-to-point operation. This rather complex vehicle uses an intricate drive system to allow helicopter operations with cyclic and collective control, as well as blade pitch control, combined with normal aircraft control surfaces in conventional flight operations.”

United States Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) scientists are working on the SkyTote. It is a Small Business Innovative Research Phase II effort orchestrated by Aerovironment for AFRL’s Air Vehicles Directorate. The researchers working on the new UAV hope that SkyTote will become a safe, inexpensive, and reliable choice for assessing bomb damage and conducting resupply missions or helping with emergency troop evacuations. Researchers have been working on various versions of the SkyTote since 1998. Conventional helicopters with the same payload characteristics can attain speeds between 100 and 105 knots, while the SkyTote, equipped with hover capabilities can attain speeds of 200 knots.”