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PDW’s C100 heavy-lift portable drone makes DoD’s Blue sUAS list

Manufacturer of high capability security and defense UAVs, Performance Drone Works (PDW) has announced its C100 heavy-lift C100 quadcopter has been named to the Blue sUAS list of drones approved for US government operation.

Alabama-based PDW revealed Tuesday that its C100 craft had made the Blue sUAS list maintained by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU). The organization operates under the aegis of the US Department of Defense (DoD), which uses the roster as its reference of UAVs determined to meet performance and security standards for use by military agencies like the Army and Air Force.

PDW describes the C100 as an easily portable, long-endurance drone whose quick deployment and onboard tech provide advantages to soldiers during operation. It boats a maximum mission capacity of 74 flight minutes and can carry up to 15 pounds of payload. 

The PDW C100’s inclusion on the DIU Blue sUAS drone list is also based on the wide range of advanced mission capabilities it offers operators, including targeting, signal intelligence, direct effects, and last mile resupply in contested environments.

The company says it designed the C100 in accordance with dynamic military targeting methodology, and to support the tactical fusion of operations and intelligence on the battlefield

PDW developed the backpack-fitting heavy-lift drone with its in-house team of veterans, expert UAV consultants, and both current and future stakeholders in anticipation of the craft’s DIU Blue sUAS clearance.

“We are tremendously proud to announce the C100 platform’s inclusion on the Blue UAS list,” said PDW CEO Ryan Gury. “PDW is firmly committed to DIU’s mission of delivering secured technology for our operators and the addition of the C100 to the Blue UAS list represents a trusted, secure, and stable platform, giving our customers assurance when they need it most.” 

In addition to its extended flight and heavy load capabilities, the C100 features multiple payload bays and a modular, open architecture intended to permit a wide array of mission objectives and variety of loaded sensors. Its qualification for the Blue sUAS list is considered a potential boon for PDW as it joins other, almost exclusively US drone makers in that select group.

The reasons for that view are not only based on business opportunities created by potential DoD selection for current and future drone projects its defense agencies operate.  Inclusion is also considered an official vouchsafe for the data security of UAVs selected for the list – a factor all the more vital in an era when suspicions about leaks run high, and have led to the blacklisting of certain companies. 

The perceived reliability of chosen systems is designed to speed and streamline the process for purchasing and operating drones on the DIU’s list by the DoD and affiliated agencies, dramatically reducing the documentation and approval procedures required for their clearance. It’s therefore considered a virtual fast track for companies in the bidding and provision of UAVs contracted for DoD programs.

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Avatar for Bruce Crumley Bruce Crumley

Bruce Crumley is journalist and writer who has worked for Fortune, Sports Illustrated, the New York Times, The Guardian, AFP, and was Paris correspondent and bureau chief for Time magazine specializing in political and terrorism reporting. He splits his time between Paris and Biarritz, and is the author of novel Maika‘i Stink Eye.

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