Lockheed Martin Sabre Warrior UCAV Concept Has Two Noses
Writing by Evan Ackerman on Wednesday, 4 of November , 2009 at 4:03 am
Nobody seems to know what exactly this is or if anything ever came of it, although the consensus is that it’s probably a dead concept. The two noses are kinda neat, though. I’m not sure what the aerodynamic implications are, but they certainly add a bunch of payload space. I also like the idea of an optionally-manned UCAV… For that matter, why do we need dedicated UAVs at all? Why not just retrofit existing combat aircraft with optional unmanned systems for added flexibility and, for that matter, safety? The answer, of course, is that you can’t make an optionally manned UCAV that looks anywhere near as badass as this.
VIA [ Flight Global ]
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Comment by joe
Made Wednesday, 4 of November , 2009 at 8:25 am
Retrofitting existing combat aircraft with unmanned systems is not a great idea. Manned combat aircraft are extremely expensive, far more costly for comparable unmanned aircraft. The safety and reliability requirements are more stringent stringent for manned, and add significantly to cost and vehicle weight. Unmanned aircraft have no need for a cockpit, windshields, air, etc. Also, unmanned and manned aircraft have drastically different requirements. No one cares if unmanned aircraft have bumpy take-off and landings, sustain high g forces, operate for long periods of time, etc.
Comment by Robotbling
Made Thursday, 5 of November , 2009 at 12:52 am
You’d think a multi-billion (trillion?) dollary company like Lockheed Martin could afford better computer graphics presentations. :D
Anywho, this design looks remarkably like Konami’s Vic Viper (from their Gradius series). http://images.google.ca/images?q=Vic+Viper