Can’t say that I’ve heard of this particular aircraft:
“MELBOURNE, Fla. — U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has selected L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) and Air Tractor, Inc.’s AT-802U Sky Warden™ system for its Armed Overwatch program. Award of the Indefinite Quantity, Indefinite Delivery contract includes a cost ceiling of $3 billion. The program includes delivery of up to 75 manned, fixed wing aircraft, with an initial program contract award of $170 million.”
OV-10 or nothing…. But I will entertain the idea of a OV-20….
One engine…
Air Tractor gets a lot of mileage out of the airframe. One of my son’s friends is the youngest and first female FireBoss pilot. https://fireaviation.com/2022/07/21/26-year-old-is-the-youngest-and-first-ever-female-fire-boss-pilot/ Might be time for her to get a new job.
A tail dragging crop duster ain’t sexy but ought to make a good mud fighter. Question is who is going to fly it, Key West agreement banned Army armed fixed wing.
And $3B may be enough for the AF to care and add and afterburner, nuclear capability, and stealth to it…. And a smaller engine.
Based on the picture and name ‘sky tractor’ that very much looks like a repurposed crop duster…
It is a repurposed crop duster with a L3 surveillance/targeting pod and hard points for weapons, it was in the light attack competition along with the Super Tucano and AT-6 but I never though it had a chance of being selected because it was so ugly compared to them. Not a lot of fighter jocks going to be trying to get it as their first assignment, main role will be flying circles doing ISR, sad to say I see more of a domestic role spying on us deplorables.
AFSOC is lead agency, so I guess the AF.
They’ll get the pilots from the same place they get the candidates for the other AFSOC-centric AC. Not everyone want to be a fighter pilot.
Isn’t this what EP was trying to do with the Thrush 510G a few years back?
https://theintercept.com/2016/04/11/blackwater-founder-erik-prince-drive-to-build-private-air-force/
Not really. SOCOM needed a low speed, maintainable aircraft that could loiter for a long time and provide ISR and rapid CAS. I guess it’s kind of what he wanted, but they really need to be organic to SOCOM not a contracted service.
Wonder what the cost proposition between these ag birds and arming a U-28 looks like?
Watching the old Agcats work was fun. I imagine these newer birds will zip around low level and deliver some hate to the bad guys out there.
Hope they have adequate countermeasures (chaff, flare, etc.). These would seem to be sitting ducks for MANPADS or indeed medium caliber AAA.