Brazilian Navy activates unit to deploy ScanEagle drone

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The São Pedro da Aldeia Air and Naval Base, the cradle of the Brazilian Navy’s Naval Aviation, celebrated the activation ceremony of the 1st Remotely Piloted Aircraft Squadron (EsqdQE-1), created to use the new Boeing ScanEagle remotely piloted aircraft (RPA).

This unprecedented operational capability of the Naval Aviation for executing missions such as intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, promises to change the way the Brazilian Naval Air Command’s resources operate, especially on board the future Tamandaré class frigates.

The six ScanEagle systems received by the EsqdQE-1 include ARP boxes, launch and recovery systems, plus data link/control/operation equipment, which can be quickly configured on Navy surface units, such as corvettes or frigates, or Marine Corps land-based installations.

BOEING INSITU SCANEAGLE

The ScanEagle is a small, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle optimized for low-altitude flight. It is built by Insitu, a Boeing subsidiary, and is designed for reconnaissance based on the Insitu SeaScan, a commercial UAV for marine observation.

Over the past few years, improvements, upgrades, and changes have turned the ScanEagle into a portable unmanned aerial system (UAS) for state-of-the-art autonomous battlefield surveillance.

The model uses an electro-optical or infrared camera on a stabilized turret with an integrated communication system and a range of 100 km, with a flight autonomy of more than 20 hours.

The ScanEagle has a wingspan of 10.2 ft (3.1 m), a length of 4.5 ft (1.4 m), and a mass of 44 lb (20 kg) and can operate up to 80 knots (92 mph; 150 km/h), with an average cruise speed of 48 knots (55 mph; 89 km/h).

The Block D aircraft uses a high-resolution camera, a custom Mode C transponder, and a new video system and does not require a runway to operate.

It is launched with an Insitu-patented pneumatic launcher, known as a “SuperWedge” launcher, and recovered with the “Skyhook” recovery system, a hook on the wingtip to attach a rope hanging from a 9.1 to 15.2-meter pole.

With information from InfoDefensa