Marines delivered fuel from a standard crewed helicopter to an uncrewed autonomous helicopter in July for the primary time within the history of the Marine Corps or Navy, in keeping with the Corps.
During an exercise at Twentynine Palms, California, a Marine heavy-lift CH-53E Super Stallion provided fuel to an unmanned Navy MQ-8C Fire Scout, as a option to extend the range of the latter aircraft, the Marine Corps said in a Thursday Marine Corps story.
On July 31, the hefty Super Stallion transferred roughly 700 kilos of fuel to the Fire Scout, slightly below the uncrewed aircraft’s maximum payload, in keeping with the story.
The Super Stallion can afford at hand off that quantity of fuel: Its maximum fuel payload is 23,450 kilos. Meaning the Super Stallion can refuel the Fire Scout multiple times in hard-to-reach areas, keeping the Fire Scout going over longer distances and periods of time, in keeping with the discharge.
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The Fire Scout typically operates from a littoral combat ship, a comparatively small Navy vessel designed for operations that happen near shore, the discharge said.
But in Service Level Training Exercise 5-23 within the California desert, Marines from Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 361 put the unmanned system to the test in a distinct type of environment.
“We’re within the desert, however the logistical, administrative, and most significantly the tactical lessons learned listed below are applicable to any clime and place,” Lt. Col. Nathaniel Griggs, the highest acquisitions, construction and enhancements officer at Twentynine Palms, California, said within the story.
The refueling occurred with each aircraft on the bottom, the story said. The Fire Scout got here from the Navy’s Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 21.
Lately, because it has stared down the potential threat of the technologically sophisticated Chinese military, the Marine Corps has emphasized reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance, and the role of unmanned aircraft specifically.
The Corps also has contended with what leaders have acknowledged is an outdated, vulnerable logistics system. Fuel and other elements of logistics could come under stress within the more spread-out type of combat for which the service is preparing, latest Marine doctrine says.
Irene Loewenson is a staff reporter for Marine Corps Times. She joined Military Times as an editorial fellow in August 2022. She is a graduate of Williams College, where she was the editor-in-chief of the coed newspaper.