Marine Corps Begins Training On Shadow UAS

Defense Daily, July 25, 2007

AAI Corp. [UIC] has begun training Marine Corps personnel to fly and maintain the Shadow tactical unmanned aircraft systems (TUAS) in preparation for the service's transition later in 2007 to the surveillance, reconnaissance, and intelligence-gathering system, the company reported.

The Marine Corps is retiring its Pioneer UAV, Inc., Pioneer unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), which have supported Marine ground forces for more than 20 years, including in Operation Iraqi Freedom, AAI said.

The Marine Corps has been using Pioneer since 1986.

Pioneer unmanned aircraft systems were produced by Pioneer UAV, Inc., a company owned equally by AAI Corporation and Israel Aerospace Industries, Ltd.

The Marine Corps opted to move to Shadow because its capabilities are very similar to that of Pioneer, it is combat proven, has more than 100,000 flight hours in Iraq and has robust training facilities, the source said (Defense Daily, Dec. 20).

"The Shadow has a current production line and an existing contract that the Marine Corps can leverage. In short, the Army program provides a very low- risk option to provide an immediate replacement for Pioneer with all the required sustainment requirements in place," a Marine Corps source said in December.

In 1999, the Army selected AAI to be the prime contractor for its tactical unmanned aircraft system -- the Shadow 200 (RQ-7B).

AAI Corp. is a division of United Industrial Corp.

The Army, Navy, and Marine Corps have initiated a joint procurement strategy designed to leverage existing contracts and acquisition efficiencies, as well as reduce total life cycle cost of ownership.

Under this plan, the Marine Corps intends to transfer procurement funds to the Army, which manages the Shadow TUAS program, to enable the Marines to acquire two new Shadow production systems from AAI, the prime contractor for Shadow.

In addition, AAI has been awarded a $3.8 million contract from the U.S. Army to provide training services to the U.S. Marine Corps in connection with their transition to the Shadow TUAS. This performance-based logistics contract designates $3.4 million for transition training for U.S. Marine Corps personnel and $415,000 for development of the Shadow training program.

The Army is buying 83 Shadows. The Navy is purchasing six for the Marine Corps (Defense Daily, Dec. 15).

AAI has also been awarded a $3.8 million contract from the Army to provide training services to the Marine Corps in connection with their transition to the Shadow TUAS. This performance-based logistics contract designates $3.4 million for transition training for Marine Corps personnel and $415,000 for development of the Shadow training program, AAI said.

The two Marine Corps units scheduled to receive the Shadow systems are the VMU-1 "Watchdogs" based at 29 Palms, Calif., and the VMU-2 "Night Owls" based at Cherry Point, N.C., according to the company.

In Iraq and Afghanistan, Shadow-equipped units of the Army and National Guard have recorded a combined total of more than 180,000 flight hours and 37,000 sorties in support of combat operations. In all worldwide operations, Shadows have registered in excess of 200,000 flight hours and 49,000 sorties, AAI said.

[Copyright 2006 Access Intelligence, LLC. All rights reserved.]

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