Raytheon Co. has bought the technology and name of the KillerBee unmanned aircraft with a goal of producing the drone for the Navy and Marines.
Last year Raytheon was teaming up with the KillerBee’s maker, Swift Engineering Inc. of San Clement, Calif., to compete for the military drone contracts. Northrop Grumman Corp. later acquired the aircraft system from Swift.
Raytheon purchased rights from Northrop Grumman to produce, improve and sell KillerBee IV. Now “our plan is to continuously mature the system and tailor it to meet the needs of allied warfighters around the globe,” said Bob Francois, vice president of advanced programs at Tucson’s Raytheon Missile Systems.
Under the purchase agreement, Raytheon will submit the KillerBee for the Navy and Marine Corps’ Small Tactical UAS and Tier II competition.
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The aircraft’s bat-like, blended-wing body can be launched from land or sea. Raytheon calls it a “major upgrade” to existing embedded airborne surveillance, reconnaissance and target acquisition capability.
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