Sikorsky Packs Four Nomad 100 Drones Into One Container for Rapid Deployment

The briefing

Sikorsky has unveiled the Nomad 100 Fast Pack, a containerized kit that puts four of its autonomous VTOL drones and everything needed to fly them inside a single standard 20 foot shipping container. The company introduced the system on October 12 as the Association of the United States Army annual meeting opened in Washington. In the planned configuration, two aircraft can be mission ready in under 15 minutes.

Why it matters

The pitch is logistics, not a new airframe. Dispersed forces in the Indo Pacific cannot count on runways, ground control stations or large aviation crews, so Sikorsky is selling an air capability that arrives in a box, launches from a ship deck or an improvised clearing, then packs up and moves. Whether the concept becomes a program is still open. Military Times noted the announcement did not say whether a Fast Pack has been built or whether any service has ordered or is evaluating one, which makes this a concept to track rather than a fielded capability.

Key details

• The Fast Pack container holds four Nomad 100 aircraft plus mission command software, power, communications and sustainment equipment, according to Military Times and TWZ.
• Two aircraft can be mission ready in under 15 minutes and the other two within four to six hours, according to Sikorsky. TWZ reported the second pair is stored on the upper shelf of the container.
• The Nomad 100 has an 18 foot wingspan and is a Group 3 drone that pairs vertical lift with fixed wing cruise through a rotor blown wing design, and it flies with Sikorsky MATRIX autonomy software, according to Military Times.
• TWZ, reporting from AUSA, cited Sikorsky figures of 10 to 14 hours of endurance depending on payload, a range exceeding 800 nautical miles and a 60 pound mission payload. Military Times noted the company has not released payload, range or endurance figures in its release, so those numbers rest on the AUSA briefing alone.
• Configured by the customer, the kit can support intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting missions, as well as light attack and contested logistics, according to Military Times. TWZ reported the AUSA display aircraft carried a sensor turret with laser designation and four small glide munitions.
• The aircraft was developed under the DARPA EVADE program, and Sikorsky said in July it had finished initial ground and flight testing, according to Military Times. TWZ reported Sikorsky holds a contract for three Nomad 100s under EVADE and that the Marine Corps is also buying two.