ACUA Ocean, Teledyne FLIR Defense Complete UAS, USV Demonstrations

ACUA Ocean and Teledyne FLIR Defense have successfully completed two days of demonstrations to the UK MOD and offshore industry partners, having been awarded funding by UK Defence Innovation (UKDI) to conduct a joint demonstration of an integrated tethered uncrewed aerial system (T-UAS) and uncrewed surface vessel (USV) capability. 

The program saw Teledyne FLIR’s SkyCarrier UAS platform autonomously launch a SkyRanger R70 drone, operated remotely from ACUA Ocean’s USV Pioneer. Pioneer is the UK’s first Lloyd’s Register-certified remotely operated uncrewed vessel to deliver a persistent, long-endurance maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) platform for the Royal Navy and wider UK defense customers.

In tethered configuration, the SkyRanger R70 was launched from its SkyCarrier container and operated from the Pioneer via a managed power and data tether, removing reliance on onboard battery endurance and enabling persistent, continuous aerial surveillance directly slaved to the USV’s position. 

SkyCarrier enables fully autonomous, on-the-move drone deployment from land vehicles, maritime vessels, or fixed sites. SkyCarrier’s container fully protects the drone when closed and opens to unfold an articulating launch and landing pad, allowing drones to autonomously take off and return, even while in motion or on uneven terrain. The SkyRanger R70’s multiple embedded NVIDIA processors provide artificial intelligence capability at the edge, including object detection and classification, while four dedicated computer vision cameras enable autonomous operations. A long-range, high-resolution stabilized EO/IR payload suite delivers Group 2 ISR performance in a Group 1 UAS platform.

The UKDI-funded demonstrator validated the technical integration of the T-UAS with the Pioneer modular payload architecture and proved the combined system’s operational performance in open-ocean sea states, ahead of further development and potential commercial deployment as scale.