DTRA and Boeing "have demonstrated successfully that ScanEagle unmanned air vehicles modified to look for biological warfare agents can effectively intercept, detect and fly through simulated biological plumes or clouds to collect airborne agents," Boeing said in a statement Monday.

"Tests also show that the UAVs can successfully collect airborne material and data from a target site that can help U.S. forces combat the threat from biological agents and minimize the danger to friendly forces and civilians," the company said.

"From early November 2007 to the end of January 2008, Boeing conducted developmental, shipboard integration and operational flight tests of the Biological Combat Assessment System as part of the BCAS Advanced Technology Demonstration program," it said.

"Developmental testing was conducted in November 2007 at Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. The shipboard integration testing was conducted at sea in early December 2007. And, in late January 2008, the final operational demonstration test was conducted from the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command 38 research vessel in the Gulf of Mexico," Boeing said.

"We now know that we can use UAVs to find and intercept biological plumes using computerized prediction models, along with location and tracking software and other UAV-based sensors. We've also demonstrated that the BCAS UAVs can operate at beyond-line-of-sight ranges far in excess of our program requirements." said Keith Coleman, Boeing Phantom Works program manager for the BCAS ATD program.

Boeing said these capabilities "would enable U.S. forces to accurately perform, at safe distances, battle damage assessment of plume releases that result from counter-force strikes against facilities dedicated to the research, production and/or storage of biological warfare agents."

"In the final operational demonstration tests in late January, the two BCAS ScanEagles were launched at sea from the NAVAIR 38 ship, successfully intercepted seven of eight simulated biological plumes," the company said.

"The tests were part of a two-year, Phase 1 contract awarded to Boeing Phantom Works by the BCAS Program Office of DTRA within the U.S. Department of Defense," it said.