Airbus US adds L3Harris to its USMC Aerial Logistics Connector team

A computer-generated image of the Airbus US-proposed MQ-72C unmanned aerial logistics connector. (Airbus US Space & Defense)

Airbus US Space & Defense and L3Harris Technologies announced a teaming agreement for the US Marine Corps' (USMC's) Aerial Logistics Connector (ALC) programme at the Army Aviation Association of America (AAAA) conference in Nashville, Tennessee, on 14 May.

Under the agreement, L3Harris will bring its system integration capabilities to the Airbus MQ-72C Logistics Connector, an unmanned variant of the UH-72 Lakota helicopter, according to an Airbus statement on 14 May. L3Harris' “digital backbone with integrated command-and-control nodes” and a modular open systems approach (MOSA) will enable the marines to “rapidly integrate third-party, commercial off-the-shelf hardware that will enable maximum system versatility and mission adaptability”, the statement said.

The partnership will help the marines evolve their mission sets and “enable more advanced levels of systems integration across the [US] Marine Corps and broader joint force”, the statement said.

“We are focused on accelerating development to get this capability into the hands of military personnel,” Jason Lambert, president for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance at L3Harris, said in the statement.

Partnership

“Partnering with a proven systems integrator opens the aperture on what our aircraft can do operationally in contested and austere environments,” Robert Geckle, chairman and CEO for Airbus US Space & Defense, said in the statement.

One of the important attributes of L3Harris is its “flight-testing facilities in Texas … [it's] such a force multiplier to move quickly to bring out these prototypes”, Geckle said during a media briefing at AAAA on 14 May.