The U.S. Air Force has concluded the second flight test of collaborative small diameter bombs (CSDB) under the Golden Horde Vanguard program, which aims to demonstrate networked collaborative weapons.
Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and prime contractor Scientific Applications and Research Associates had CSDBs communicate with each other to collaboratively engage a target on Feb. 19th, AFRL said Friday.
CSDB uses collaborative autonomy payloads to react to battlespace changes without direct human intervention. The bombs attack targets based on pre-programmed engagement rules.
Boeing performed technology integration work for the effort, and L3Harris Technologies provided its Banshee 2 software-defined radio for communications. The demonstration also used a radio antenna from Georgia Tech Research Institute.
AFRL and its partners demonstrated collaborative flight between four CSDB units in the second test, doubling the amount of CSDBs demonstrated in the first round. USAF plans to conduct CSDB's final test this spring.
