Image of US Air Force/Kratos Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology demonstrator emerges

Back in July '16, Kratos won the award to produce the Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology demonstrator. The intent was to produce a low cost, long range strike UCAV for the USAF. The idea being while reusable, they were cheap enough if they were shot down it would not bankrupt the USAF. That, in turn, would allow the USAF to have swarms of attack UCAVs that could be part of the spectrum of strike capabilities. Bombers, arsenal plane, tactical strike (5th gen), Have Raider II, etc. all the way down to the LCAAT.

globenewswire.com... -Award.html

The Pentagon did its Lab Day show-off and an image of the LCAAT emerged:

alert5.com...

(I can upload images on my tablet, but not do yotube. On my laptop, I can do youtube embeds, but not upload. o.O)

Some say it looks a bit like the Kratos XQ-222 (which looks a lot like the German Barracuda UAV), but really it looks like something newish. I can't help but feel LCAAT looks like something I've seen before though.

www.kratosusd.com...

en.wikipedia.org...

originally posted by: anzha
Back in July '16, Kratos won the award to produce the Low Cost Attritable Aircraft Technology demonstrator. The intent was to produce a low cost, long range strike UCAV for the USAF. The idea being while reusable, they were cheap enough if they were shot down it would not bankrupt the USAF. That, in turn, would allow the USAF to have swarms of attack UCAVs that could be part of the spectrum of strike capabilities. Bombers, arsenal plane, tactical strike (5th gen), Have Raider II, etc. all the way down to the LCAAT.

globenewswire.com... -Award.html

The Pentagon did its Lab Day show-off and an image of the LCAAT emerged:

alert5.com...

(I can upload images on my tablet, but not do yotube. On my laptop, I can do youtube embeds, but not upload. o.O)

Some say it looks a bit like the Kratos XQ-222 (which looks a lot like the German Barracuda UAV), but really it looks like something newish. I can't help but feel LCAAT looks like something I've seen before though.

www.kratosusd.com...

en.wikipedia.org...

Lol, Drone Swarm.

Someone playing a little too much COD at the Pentagon these days.

Ah the German Barracuda. One of our latest embarrassments..

a reply to: SR1TX

I hate to be that guy but it´s not "drones". A drone is a toy, those are UAV/UCAV.

a reply to: verschickter

Ah the German Barracuda. One of our latest embarrassments..

???? Would you care to explain?

Also, I hate to be that other guy, but UAV & drone are probably going the route of hacker/cracker...

a reply to: anzha
As far as I´m informed (correct me if wrong), this thing will never get in service in German airspace because it lacks some specifications needed. Hearsay from someone. Could be bull#.

Embarrassing, because our Bundeswehr is falling apart, nothing works, not even the G36.

I can´t really connect your last sentence about the hack/crack with my "hate to be that guy sentece".

a reply to: verschickter

I wouldn't be surprised. They first flew in 2006, and crashed the first aircraft, then flew again in 2008 or 2009. It's been "in development" for going on 14 years.

They announced earlier this year that they're going to buy Triton, with delivery starting in 2025.

a reply to: verschickter

re hacker/cracker.

A hacker used to be someone who coded in a certain timely manner and style. A cracker is what people used to call what is NOW called a hacker: someone who attacks/compromises computer systems. There was a long rear guard action of people trying to keep the public from calling the latter a hacker. They lost.

Something similar is happening with the UAV/drone word usage. The proper terms are UAV/UCAV, but most laymen call them drones. In time...

Hopefully with a bigger payload than 300kg..

a reply to: verschickter
You are probably talking about Euro Hawk. The Barracuda was never more than a demonstrator craft.

The EuroHawk program failed because of de Maiziere being his usual self - irresponsible, incompetent bureaucrat who fails at every department he gets assigned to.
Apparentely it was just inpossible for some reason nobody understands to get the proper certifications to fly the Thing operationally in german airspace.
They'll now try again with Triton. The DoD thinks it can get the proper ceritification for that drone but politicans are already disagreeing with this assumption.
And the Euro Hawk is still around btw. They want to fly it again in 2018 for testing the recon equipment of whatever.
They can do this because getting certifications to fly test vehicles in german airspace is much easier than to get permission to fly the same vehicle in an operational capacity.
Oh and American RQ-4s can fly obver and even in land in Europe without issues.

The G36 works fine. It just cant be used like an machingun von der Leyen being her usual self - irresponsible, incompetent bureaucrat who fails at every department she gets assigned to.

Its just one big joke like the entire Bundeswehr these days or the government for that matter.

a reply to: Blackfinger
Yeah my thoughts exactly. 300kg's is really not very useful, it needs to be 500+. Mind you it seems to have a good quoted operational range.

a reply to: thebozeian

Its not entirely useless.

It gets you 6 hellfires, 14 griffins, (almost) 4 sidewinders or (almost) two AMRAAMs.

500 lbs *IS* significantly better though.

a reply to: anzha
Or it also gets you about 2.5 SDB mark 1's or 2 and a bit mark 2's. Now if they could stretch it to a bit over 500kg's then that gives you maybe 5 SDB 1's or 4 mark 2's for moving ground target engagement at standoff ranges of at least 45 miles if its moving and more than 60 if its stationary. Interestingly a look at the Kratos website specs for the earlier XQ-222 shows artwork that seems to depict it launching SDB's. From that we can probably infer the minimum length of its weapons bay which should infer the minimum length of the LCAAT's bay and from that we can roughly work out what weapons it could theoretically carry. It could also for example carry something along the lines of APKWS/DAGR/LOGIR/GATR at which point you are looking at even with just 300kg payload, up to 20 munitions, 30 or more if its 500kg's. And depending on which version anywhere between 1000m engagement up to 12km or greater from high altitude. Depending on which 70mm guided weapon used you will get some laser guided, some using scene matching for true fire and forget.

What we dont know however is exactly what constitutes "payload", it may also include mission specific sensors that could eat into those figures. It will be interesting when they release more information about it and we get to see what it will be capable of.

a reply to: thebozeian

A bit more info.

warisboring.com...

Makes sense than pouring money into older generation airframes..