Sikorsky presents U-Hawk This new helicopter flies without a pilot - and eats entire drones

Sikorsky's latest product is an eye-catcher: where the cockpit is normally located, the U-Hawk has doors that open to the side. The autonomous helicopter is designed to support US troops in various ways.

The American aircraft manufacturer Sikorsky has unveiled a new version of the well-known Black Hawk helicopter: The S-70UAS aka U-Hawk does without a pilot altogether and is equipped with canopy half-shells that open forwards to reveal a retractable ramp that can be used to load the helicopter.

According to the manufacturer, the lack of a cockpit allows 25 percent more payload than the UH-60L, on which the U-Hawk is based. It should be able to load and unload ground drones quickly and deliver supplies or even missiles autonomously, as well as launch air drones.

The development of the aircraft is said to have taken just ten months: Internally, the U-Hawk should be able to carry around 3.2 tons. If a cable is used, it can carry 4 tons. If loaded internally and externally, the limit is 4.5 tons, Lockheed Martin reports.

"I think the payload is what really sets it apart from the competition," Sikorsky vice president Beth Parcella told The War Zone. "So you can imagine the missions that the U-Hawk can do."

Just in case you can't imagine it, she clarifies again what it's all about: "From delivering swarms of drones, to transporting cargo in a contested logistics environment, to getting on and off unmanned ground vehicles, to operating in an anti-drone role, to rolling supplies in and out."

However, Parcella did not reveal exactly how anti-drone combat works with the U-Hawk. The operating costs are said to be significantly lower than for comparable models where pilots are still at work. The U-Hawk can allegedly be in the air for 14 hours without refueling.