Navy Milestone: First Unmanned, Carrier-Based Catapult Launch

On May 14th, off the coast of Virginia, the X-47B Unmanned Combat Air System (UCAS) taxied and launched from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush. George H.W. Bush is the first aircraft carrier to successfully catapult launch an unmanned aircraft from its flight deck. The unmanned aircraft executed several planned low approaches to the carrier and safely transited across the Chesapeake Bay to land at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, MD, after a 65-minute flight.