Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
The U.S. Air Force's Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Battlelab (UAVB) soon will begin test-dropping the BLU-108 anti-armor submunition from a Sentry HP unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), according to Lt. Col. Timothy Cook, chief of the UAVB's Combat Applica-tions Division. "We are going to take a 12-and-a-half foot wingspan, 185-pound empty weight UAV, put a wide-area anti-armor munition on it, and we're going to kill tanks," Cook said March 31 at the Institute for Defense and Government Advancement's (IDGA) Combat UAV conference in Arlington, Va.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and Boeing are mulling their options following an accident in which the X-50A Dragonfly unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) was "damaged extensively" in a crash. An investigation team has been formed to look into the mishap, which took place at roughly 7:30 a.m. MST March 30 at Yuma Proving Ground, Ariz. The Dragonfly was attempting to hover at 10-20 feet above the ground when the accident occurred, according to Boeing spokesman Doug Kinneard.
The U.S. Air Force has formed a task force to prioritize investments and improvements for its Predator unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), according to Maj. Gen. Ronald Sams, director of ISR for air and space operations at Air Force headquarters. The task force was formed roughly a year ago at the prompting of the Air Force Chief of Staff, Gen. John Jumper, and Air Force Secretary James Roche, according to Sams. Sams leads the task force, which is called "Task Force Arnold."
