Navy Engineers Unleash Long-Range Tech at Twentynine Palms
In May 2025, Naval Research Laboratory engineers tested the advanced RASP CASA system (Refueling and Servicing Package for Communications and Situational Awareness) at Twentynine Palms, California, showcasing how hydrogen-powered technologies can extend warfighter capabilities. The demonstration featured high-altitude balloons and long-endurance unmanned aircraft using hydrogen fuel cells to enable over-the-horizon communications, real-time video, and command links—well beyond traditional line-of-sight limits. This breakthrough not only enhances situational awareness for Marines and Sailors but also offers low-signature power solutions and the ability to produce hydrogen locally, giving the military major logistical and operational advantages. Looking ahead, the Navy aims to take this tech shipboard, launching autonomous aircraft and balloons directly from vessels at sea to revolutionize battlefield communications and endurance.
Transcript
00:00:01 In May 2025, engineers from the Naval Research Laboratory journeyed to 29 Palms, California to test their state-of-the-art RASP CASSA system with unmanned aircraft systems or UAS and hydrogen-powered technologies. In an effort to bring long range capabilities to today's war fighter, RASP CASSA stands for refueling and servicing
00:00:21 package communications and situational awareness. We're bringing together a bunch of different technologies to provide a new capability to uh the war fighter. So the goal is to demonstrate the value of hydrogen uh in several different use cases. One of which is high altitude balloons. Another is long range endurance hydrogen fuel cell powered
00:00:44 unmanned aircraft. And the third is low signature electrical production on the ground. So during this demonstration, we were able to demonstrate all of the automated launch equipment technology and the use of hydrogen to uh develop and enable the over the horizon communications to the UAS. We use the the balloon to enable that communication relay link between the operator ground
00:01:11 station and the UAS. And with that we can provide full motion video and command and control to the operator through the balloon. So typically a group two UAS like the stalker main aircraft that we used here uh can fly about 50 miles out to the horizon and maintain a line of sight communications link using the raspicassa technology with this high altitude
00:01:33 balloon relaying the signals we can now fly an airplane like that well over the horizon and really expand um the range over which you know war fighters marines and sailors have uh situational awareness. Fuel cell technology has come a long way from the 1980s into the current present time. We have been able to figure out how to manufacture these capabilities and these devices here in
00:01:53 the United States, which is an enormous improvement over where we were at 101 15 years ago.
>> I think it's important to emphasize that while hydrogen is often discussed in an environmental context, it does provide clear war fighting benefits that otherwise wouldn't exist. So, we've demonstrated two of those here today. And another one I should mention
00:02:13 is the fact that hydrogen can be produced locally which is unique and offers some real logistics advantages to the war fighter. At this demo we're demonstrating the capability focused portions of the Rascasso program. So the high altitude balloons uh the longrange endurance on main aircraft. There's another piece of the Rascasso program which is a hydrogen
00:02:34 production system intended to go shipboard. So longterm over the next 10 years, what we'd really like to see is a series of demonstrations that use that hydrogen production system aboard a ship to launch high altitude balloons in unmanned aircraft and demonstrate how these technologies can be employed in operational context by the Navy.