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 ]
Comments (4)
- Add this post to
- Del.icio.us -
- Digg
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
Comment by quantum_flux
Made Monday, 25 of October , 2010 at 6:40 pm
That just seems too cheesy, unless they are willing to make it into a spaceplane.
Comment by Dan
Made Monday, 28 of February , 2011 at 7:47 am
Does anyone know what the range of this thing would be. Because if it is designed for air-air combat it needs long range. And also a high payload and to me, 4 AMRAAMs are not enough. Also, giving an unmanned aircraft the capability to be piloted by a human pilot is a BULLSHIT. What would be the point of the UCAV and all the advantages it brings with it, then? It just makes no sense. My opinion is that the US government and military should wait for other aircraft manufacturing companies to come up with their ideas before going with the Lockheed Martin’s product. They didn’t do this with the ATF program and the result was the adoption of the weaker aircraft, the F-22. The YF-23 was better from range, payload, speed and stealth points of view.
