Wilmington,
Mass. - July 19, 2004 - HR Textron
(Santa Clarita, Calif), an operating unit of Textron Systems, was a major contributor
in the first-ever test of a weapon system delivered from an unmanned aircraft.
In March 2004, a Boeing X-45A unmanned combat aircraft successfully deployed a
250-pound Small Smart Bomb at NASA Dryden’s Flight Research Center, Edwards Air
Force Base, California. HR Textron, a manufacturer of electro mechanical actuation
and missile control systems, provides all the flight controls on this first all-electric
aircraft, as well as the tail actuation system for the Small Smart Bomb.
“HR Textron is proud to be a crucial supplier to Boeing for both the X-45A
and Small Smart Bomb involved in this landmark test,” states Tom Harrington, vice
president of air-launched weapons at Textron Systems. “Our Electro Mechanical
Actuation (EMA) expertise has been well proven in products like the Joint Direct
Attack Munition (JDAM) and the AIM-9X Sidewinder Missile. We are excited to be
bringing this capability to a revolutionary force enabler such as the X-45 J-UCAS,
and to the highly precise Small Diameter Bomb.”
The Joint Unmanned Combat
Air Systems (J-UCAS) X-45 program is a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency/U.S.
Air Force/U.S. Navy/Boeing effort to demonstrate the technical feasibility, military
utility, and operational value of an unmanned air combat system for both the Air
Force and the Navy.
Boeing’s X-45A technology demonstrator successfully
released the weapon from its internal weapons bay at 35,000 feet and 0.67 Mach
over the Precision Impact Range Area in the Southern California desert. The test
demonstrates that an autonomous unmanned combat aircraft can respond to human
direction, and successfully release a weapon from an internal bay. About
Textron Systems
Textron Systems Corporation ("Textron Systems")
provides innovative technology solutions to meet the needs of the defense, homeland
security and aerospace communities. The company is known for its precision smart
weapons, surveillance systems, complex intelligence and communications systems,
aircraft control components, piston engines, specialty marine craft and armored
vehicles. Textron Systems is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Avco Corporation. Avco
Corporation is wholly-owned subsidiary of Textron Inc. More information is available
at www.textronsystems.com. About
Textron
Textron Inc. is a $10 billion multi-industry company operating
in 33 countries with approximately 37,000 employees. The company leverages its
global network of aircraft, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers
with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for
its powerful brands such as Bell Helicopter, Cessna Aircraft, Jacobsen, Kautex,
Lycoming, E-Z-GO and Greenlee, among others. More information is available at
www.textron.com. | 
