Raytheon's Coyote unmanned aircraft system will be flying into hurricanes.
The small, tube-launched — and expendable — UAS will be used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for hurricane tracking, according to a Raytheon news release.
"A team of NOAA and Raytheon scientists will use the latest version of Coyote to monitor the track and intensity of storms," Raytheon said. "The team recently completed a successful calibration flight over Avon Park, Florida, where a Coyote was launched from a P-3 Hurricane Hunter aircraft to prepare for deployment during storm season."
A NOAA Coyote flew into the eye of Hurricane Edouard in 2014. "We've made significant improvements to Coyote. It can now fly for up to one hour and 50 miles away from the launch aircraft," said Thomas Bussing, a vice president at Raytheon Missile Systems.
