Honeywell RQ-16 T-Hawk (Tarantula Hawk)

Unmanned VTOL Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) (2008)

Aviation / Aerospace

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Image from United States Army press release.

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The Honeywell RQ-16 T-Hawk UAV provides a portable VTOL UAV system to forward-deployed troops.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 10/19/2018 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

The Honeywell RQ-16 T-Hawk is a Vertical Take-Off and Landing (VTOL) Micro Air Vehicle (MAV) currently in limited service with the United States Army and Navy. It has also been procured by the United Kingdom and is under consideration with the military of India. The system allows for backpack-sized portability and operation by a single person with a vertical launch capability allowing it to be used out of confined, open-air spaces. The RQ-16 is utilized by ordnance disposal technicians to receive an overview of a given potentially lethal situation. To date, the MAV has proven robust in the field and has served operators well. One RQ-16 system was used to provide a close-up view of the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear reactor that had fallen victim to the massive earthquake and tsunami. One T-Hawk MAV was lost on the roof of Reactor Number 2.

Honeywell International is the RQ-16's contracting authority and manufacturer. RQ-16s were initially trialed in the Iraqi Theater (successfully) and have since gone on to see extended use in the Afghanistan Theater.

The RQ-16 sports a 3W-56 56cc Boxer Twin piston engine developing 4 horsepower and can reach speeds of 80 miles per hour with a service ceiling of 10,500 feet. Overall weight is 20lbs and the system is broken down into two major components for transport. Two carrying bags are provided.

On September 19th, 2012, it was announced that the United States Navy has awarded Honeywell International a $8,286,161 contract for support of the RQ-16B T-Hawk system (Block II Micro Air Vehicle) for use in ongoing operations concerning Operation Enduring Freedom.

The "T-Hawk" receives its name from the "Tarantula Hawk", a predatory wasp common to the American southwest.

Specifications

Service Year

2008

Origin

United States

Status

ACTIVE
In Active Service.

Crew

1

Production

410
UNITS

Honeywell International - USA

(View other Aviaton-Related Manufacturers)

United Kingdom; United States

(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)

✓ Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance (ISR), Scout
Surveil ground targets / target areas to assess environmental threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.

✓ Unmanned Capability
Aircraft inherently designed (or later developed) with an unmanned capability to cover a variety of over-battlefield roles.

Empty Wgt

18 lb
(8 kg)

(Showcased structural values pertain to the Honeywell RQ-16A T-Hawk (Tarantula Hawk) production variant)

Installed: 1 x 3W-56 Boxer Twin piston engine developing 4 horsepower.

Max Speed

81 mph
(130 kph | 70 kts)

Ceiling

10,499 ft
(3,200 m | 2 mi)

♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the Honeywell RQ-16A T-Hawk (Tarantula Hawk) production variant. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database. View aircraft by powerplant type)

None.

G-MAV (Micro Air Vehicle) - Initial Product Designation.

RQ-16A T-Hawk - Base Series Designation; US Navy usage; 372 examples on order (2008).

RQ-16B T-Hawk - Improved production model

XM156 (Class I) - US Army Designation

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