California drone developer Shield AI has received a $198.1-million contract to deliver its V-BAT unmanned aerial system (UAS) to the US Coast Guard.
The deal supports the service’s goal of employing an autonomous craft from its existing cutters for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) missions.
Work for the contract will run through 2029 and cover ISR services such as installation and reinstallation of corresponding equipment, as well as pilot and mission training.
Coupling Cutters With Drones
The US Coast Guard wrote that its cutter-based UAS project requires systems with a fully automated flight function, minimum endurance of 12 hours per day, and 24/7 deployment readiness.
Payloads will include infrared and electro-optical sensors, communication relays, and other solutions supporting classification, detection, and identification tasks.
The service said that its contract with Shield AI will be used to expand the UAS capability on the National Security Cutters or Legend-class vessels, the coast guard’s largest active patrol fleet.
Future progress will enable the integration of drones into additional cutters, the service noted. All procured systems under the coast guard’s cutter-deployed UAS effort will be designated as Maritime UAS or MUAS.
“All maritime vessels will become drone carriers as maritime forces move to deploy distributed, affordable, intelligent drones,” Shield AI Co-Founder and President Brandon Tseng stated.
“V-BAT’s selection by the US Coast Guard is indicative of a broader market movement where increasingly customers are recognizing they can accomplish the vast majority of their mission sets with affordable drones rather than exquisite, expensive crewed or uncrewed aircraft.”
The V-BAT Aircraft
Shield AI’s V-BAT is a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft designed for threat localization, anti-drug enforcement, border security, and expeditionary forward operating base defense.
It can be set up from pack to flight in under 20 minutes by a two-person team and transported via pickup truck or UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter.
The system runs with Shield AI’s proprietary Hivemind technology, enabling autonomous flight across austere environments without GPS or communications.
This software supports control over four V-BATs and is currently under development to increase its swarming number.
The V-BAT measures 9 feet (2.74 meters), has a wingspan of 9.7 feet (2.69 feet), a weight of 125 pounds (56.7 kilograms), and a payload capacity of 25 pounds (11.3 kilograms).
It is powered by a two-cylinder engine with 24 horsepower for a maximum speed of 56 miles (90 kilometers) per hour and an altitude of up to 20,000 feet (6,100 meters).