Leidos has won a new prime contract with the U.S. Marine Corps to develop an uncrewed aircraft system that can autonomously resupply forward-deployed ground forces.
Under the contract, Leidos will develop, deliver and demonstrate an autonomous medium unmanned logistics system – air prototype. The firm-fixed-price, multiple-award contract has a period of performance of 18 months to build a single prototype.
“Leidos leads the industry in taking cutting-edge innovations and making them mission-ready today,” said Tim Freeman, Leidos senior vice president and Airborne Solutions operations manager.
Once the prototype is built, it will be used to perform a logistics distribution mission at the battlefield’s tactical edge. The goal is to demonstrate a prototype UAS that can carry a logistics payload between 300 and 600 pounds to a combat area with a 25 to 100 nautical miles radius.
“The ability to autonomously deliver hundreds of pounds of supplies over long ranges will be a game-changer for the warfighter,” Freeman said. “We look forward to demonstrating how the Leidos’ SeaOnyx solution will help deliver a logistics advantage to the Marines and other branches of the military.”
The work will be performed in Colorado, Ohio, Oregon, California, Nevada and Arizona, and Leidos teamed with Phenix Solutions to design the SeaOnyx prototype.