BETHPAGE, N.Y., June 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. Army awarded Northrop Grumman Corp. a $517 million contract to build three high-altitude, long-endurance vehicles, the company said.
Northrop Grumman said its new hybrid airship weapon system will take flight in about 18 months. The airship will give warfighters in Afghanistan an "unblinking, persistent eye" of the battlefield for more than three weeks at a time, the company said in a statement.
The defense company said it would design, develop and test the long-endurance airship within 18 months and ship the system to warfighters in Middle East and Central Asia for assessment.
"Our offering supports the Army's joint military utility assessment that this disruptive innovation must meet the Army's objective of a persistent unblinking stare while providing increased operational utility to battlefield commanders," said Alan Metzger, Northrop Grumman program manager.
The long-endurance vehicles could fly at altitudes as high as 20,000 feet for three weeks at a time in national and international airspace.
