Near Earth Autonomy to Prototype Autonomous Logistics Aircraft for U.S. Marines
Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Near Earth Autonomy (Near Earth) the Medium Aerial Resupply Vehicle - Expeditionary Logistics (MARV-EL) Increment 2 program, to prototype autonomous logistics aircraft for the U.S. Marine Corps through an Other Transaction Agreement (OTA) under the Naval Aviation Systems Consortium (NASC). Near Earth will lead the program in collaboration with Bell Textron, Moog Inc., and XP Services. The team's Uncrewed 505 aerial logistics aircraft combines Near Earth's Captain autonomy with the Bell 505 and Moog’s Genesys avionics in a system ready for tactical-edge resupply in contested environments.
The program addresses a growing logistics challenge for the Marine Corps. As forces disperse under Distributed Maritime Operations and Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations concepts, sustainment demands increase, while exposing onboard helicopter crews to increased risk. The MARV-EL program will develop a risk-worthy, cargo-moving asset that can sustain forces at the tactical edge, where crewed aircraft may be too vulnerable or constrained by force-availability limits and crew-rest cycles during high-tempo 24/7 ops.
"The program is to develop an uncrewed aerial logistics aircraft for where the risk and need are highest," said Lyle Chamberlain, CTO of Near Earth. "We are combining our Captain autonomy architecture with a proven Bell 505 platform to move cargo without putting Marines in harm's way. To be as intuitive as possible, we are designing the aircraft around existing Marine Corps workflows. Operators will be able to request, dispatch, and manage missions through familiar command-and-control pathways, including MAGTAB and MANGL integration. At the same time, cargo can be loaded with standard pallet jacks and forklifts. This approach reduces infrastructure burden and helps make autonomous resupply practical for expeditionary operations.”
“This program builds on lessons learned with the Marines on the Tactical Resupply Unmanned Aircraft System (TRUAS) and Aerial Logistics Connector (ALC) programs, while extending the same shared autonomy framework we are using with the Army for the RUC-60 optionally piloted Black Hawk helicopters. Our foundation of insights, technology, and processes dramatically accelerates the development of this product and readiness to scale.”