Norway Orders Raven Small UAV

AeroVironment, Inc. (AV) announced it received an order valued at $4,862,674 under a contract with the Norwegian Defence Logistics Organisation (NDLO). The order comprises new Raven small unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), spares, training services and logistics support. Delivery of the systems is scheduled for early calendar 2011.

“With years of successful deployment, Raven is proving its value to military forces around the world,” said Tom Herring, AV senior vice president and general manager of its Unmanned Aircraft Systems business segment. “As the most prolific unmanned aircraft system, Raven gives frontline forces the ability to perform their tasks more effectively and safely. We are committed to helping the Norwegian armed forces employ Raven systems successfully.”

The Raven unmanned aircraft is a 4.2-pound, backpackable, hand-launched sensor platform that provides day and night, real-time video imagery for "over the hill" and "around the corner" reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition in support of tactical units. U.S. armed forces use Raven systems extensively for missions such as base security, route reconnaissance, mission planning and force protection. Each Raven system typically consists of three aircraft, two ground control stations and spares.

In addition to the Raven system, AV's small UAS include Puma and Wasp, which are also hand-launched and controlled by AV's hand-held ground control station. Each aircraft in AV's family of small UAS is interoperable and tailored to address a variety of operational user needs.

AV's UAS logistics operation supports systems deployed worldwide to ensure a consistently high level of operational readiness. AV has delivered thousands of small unmanned aircraft to date. Other international purchasers of Raven systems include Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands and Spain.