LTV XQM-93
| XQM-93 | |
|---|---|
| |
| Role | Communications relay drone |
| National origin | United States |
| Manufacturer | Ling-Temco-Vought |
| First flight | February 1970 |
| Developed from | LTV L450F |
The Ling-Temco-Vought XQM-93 was a
Design and development
In the late 1960s, following the early microwave HALE (High Altitude Long Endurance) vehicle studies, the
Igloo White involved seeding the region with thousands of seismic and acoustic sensors, most of them air-dropped, which would pick up indications of traffic along the trail and report them back to a central command center in Thailand, which would dispatch air strikes in response. The sensors were battery-operated and had limited range, so airborne radio relay aircraft orbited above the battle area to pick up the signals and pass them on to the command center.
Originally, the radio relays were
LTV Electrosystems' development effort focused on an endurance aircraft that could be flown as a piloted aircraft or a UAV. A number of prototypes, including piloted and UAV versions, were built and flown. They were based on a
The first prototype, designated the L-450F, was piloted. It first flew in February 1970, but was lost in an accident on its third flight in March 1970, the pilot bailing out safely. A second L-450F was built and used to complete the flight test program. The third prototype, the first UAV variant, was designated the XQM-93 and flew in early 1972. It had no cockpit or other provisions for piloted flight. It could carry a payload of 320 kilograms (700 pounds). The Air Force ordered four XQM-93s but it is unclear if they were actually delivered, since Compass Dwell was cancelled that year.
Surviving Airframes
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N2450F cn 002 is now on display in the Vintage Flying Museum at Fort Worth Meacham International Airport.[1]
72-1287 is now on display in the Frontiers of Flight Museum at Dallas Love Field Airport.[2]
Specifications (prototype)
Data from Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1973–74[3][4]
General characteristics
- Length: 29 ft 7 in (9.02 m)
- Wingspan: 57 ft 0 in (17.37 m)
- Height: 10 ft 8 in (3.25 m)
- Empty weight: 2,400 lb (1,089 kg)
- Gross weight: 5,300 lb (2,404 kg)
- Powerplant: 1 × Pratt & Whitney PT6A-34turboprop engine , 475 hp (354 kW)
Performance
- Cruise speed: 105 mph (170 km/h, 91 kn)
- Stall speed: 70 mph (114 km/h, 61 kn)
- Endurance: 24 hours
- Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,240 m)
- Maximum glide ratio: 28
- Rate of climb: 914 ft/min (4.6 m/s)
See also
Related development
- Schweizer 2-32
- LTV L450F
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
- Beechcraft QU-22 Pave Eagle
- Lockheed YO-3
- Martin Marietta Model 845
Related lists
- List of military aircraft of the United States
References
Notes
- ^ Picture of the E-Systems XQM-93A (L-450F) aircraft Archived 2015-05-09 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 21 May 2013.
- ^ Ling-Temco-Vought L-450F, 72-1287 / 201287, Frontiers of Flight Museum Retrieved 21 May 2013.
- ^ Taylor 1973, p. 521
- ISBN 978-0856855818.
This article contains material that originally came from the web article Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by Greg Goebel, which exists in the Public Domain.
Bibliography
- Taylor, John W.R., ed. (1973). Jane's All the World's Aircraft 1973–74. London, United Kingdom: Jane's Yearbooks. ISBN 978-0-354-00117-5.
External links
- E-Systems GQM-93 at Designation-Systems.Net