Aurora delivers BAMS structures

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BRIDGEPORT, W.Va., Jan. 4 (UPI) -- The U.S. Navy's Broad Area Maritime Surveillance unmanned serial system program is moving ahead with the delivery of composite aerospace structures.

Aurora Flight Sciences, which is making the aft fuselage, nacelles and V-tail assembles for the MQ-4C UAS, said it delivered the first complete ship set of structures recently to Northrop Gumman for final assembly.

"The delivery of the first ship set of flight hardware is a major step in this important program," said Aurora President and Chief Executive Officer John Langford. "We are proud of the role that Aurora plays to deliver affordable, high-quality composite structures to Northrop Grumman for the Navy BAMS UAS program."

The first MQ-4C BAMS UAS is expected to make its first flight this year. It is a long-endurance aircraft that will be used for intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

The U.S. Air Force version of the MQ-4C is the RQ-4 Global Hawk.

Aurora has headquarters in Virginia. The composite structures were manufactured at company facilities in West Virginia.