Defense and security aerial tech company Red Cat Holdings has announced the night vision-excelling Teal 2 has become the second small aircraft produced by its Teal Drones affiliate to qualify for the Department of Defense (DoD) Blue sUAS list.
Red Cat revealed its Teal 2 drone has joined the previously selected Golden Eagle on the Blue sUAS list Wednesday. The revision of the DoD reference extended the number of UAVs it considers sufficiently efficient, economical, and above all data-secure for official use by federal agencies.
Presence on the registery is considered a major advantage for defense and security small craft producers at a time when politically driven efforts in Washington have focused on data security concerns to add China-based sector leader DJI to a growing number of federal blacklists.
The current Blue sUAS list – which at the time of Red Cat’s announcement still hadn’t been revised to include the Teal 2 – is made up of 16 approved UAVs, most of which – though not all – are made in the US.
Read: US Army asks Blue sUAS suppliers to create small drone munition-dropping capabilities
In addition to the far greater access to security-tightened federal agency clients that qualification for the Blue sUAS scroll affords, selection of the Teal 2 drone marks another significant victory for Red Cat’s development strategy.
Its acquisition of Teal Drones in 2021 became the first step toward Red Cat moving to become a defense and security specialist. The final act in that came with its divestment last year from consumer tech interests it had stakes in. Since then, the company has considerably expanded its activities with US federal administrations – and military and defense agencies in particular.
Teal, for example, has been chosen to work in a US Army competition to develop next-generation small reconnaissance drones. It more recently sold a large number of Teal 2 drones that US Customs and Border Protection now deploy.
Selection of the Teal 2 drone to the DoD’s Blue sUAS list further expands the potential buyers of company craft, and represents a rather quick achievement for a UAV that was only released in April.
“Blue UAS clearance is a high bar to reach for any sUAS because of the extensive vetting process,” said Teal CEO George Matus. “With this certification, all our customers – military, government and commercial – can be confident that the Teal 2 meets the highest standards for cybersecurity, safety and operation.”
Read: Red Cat sending 200 fast, long-range Teal FPV drones to Ukraine
Red Cat describes the Teal 2 as a compact, portable drone powered by a Snapdragon 845 processor, and says it’s the first craft to be equipped with Teledyne FLIR’s new Hadron 640R sensor. The vehicle, the company adds, provides the highest resolution thermal imaging in a Group 1 UAV, enabling optimized nighttime operations – a strength that has become it’s primary selling point.
The 2.75 lb. Teal 2 boasts a maximum flight speed of 22 mph and airborne capacity of 30 minutes, as well as an array of specialized tech for machine-learning capabilities and high-speed tracking of objects.
Its selection to the Blue sUAS list, says Matus, expands the drone’s potential clients in the valuable federal agency market, and validates Red Cat’s strategy shift to focus exclusively on defense activities.
“Blue UAS certification opens the door to greater opportunities for Teal 2,” said Matus. “We can now fill orders that were contingent on certification, and in addition to orders from the US government, we know that governments of allied nations are also more likely to purchase Blue UAS-approved drones.”
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