Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
Gremlins
Unveiled in 2016, Perdix is a program that aims to develop small, air-launched drones that fly in autonomous coordinated swarms. Small aerial vehicles can be programmed to autonomously detect and track objects, and can be armed for strike missions.
DARPA has awarded Phase 1 contracts for the Gremlins program, which seeks to develop innovative technologies and systems that enable aircraft to launch and recover constellations of low-cost, reusable unmanned air systems (UAS) safely and reliably in the air. Such systems, or “gremlins,” will be deployed with a mix of mission payloads capable of generating a variety of effects in a distributed and coordinated manner, providing U.S. forces with enhanced operational flexibility at a lower cost than is possible with traditional, monolithic platforms. Phase I contracts have been awarded to four teams whose proposals cover a range of technical approaches to this challenging task. Leading the difference:
Composite Engineering, Inc. (Roseville, California)
Dynetics, Inc. (Huntsville, Ala.)
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (San Diego, California)
Lockheed Martin (Dallas, Texas)
The program plans to explore several technical areas, including:
Launch and recovery techniques, equipment and aircraft integration concepts
Low-cost, limited-life airframe designs that take advantage of existing technology and require only minor modifications to existing aircraft
High precision analysis, precise digital flight control, relative navigation and station keeping..
