Skydio Selected for US Army Short Range Reconnaissance Program

by DRONELIFE Staff Writer Ian M. Crosby

Today, Skydio, the leader in drone manufacturing and autonomous flight, announced that the Skydio system has been selected by the U.S. Army for its Short Range Reconnaissance (SRR) Program of Record. This contract has a base year value of $20.2 million, guaranteeing that  Soldiers receive access to the world’s most advanced autonomous drone technology. The Firm-Fixed-Price Five Year Production Other Transaction (OT) agreement will be worth up to $99.8 million over the period of performance.

The SSR program, managed by the Program Executive Office for Aviation’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems (PM UAS) Project Management Office, seeks to provide Soldiers with a rapidly deployable small UAS solution to carry out Reconnaissance and Surveillance (R&S) operations. Following the examination of proposals from more than 30 small UAS SRR vendors, as well as conducting an extensive testing process of five finalists in partnership with the Defense Innovation Unit, the U.S. Army selected Skydio for final integration based on Soldier feedback and design review packages intended to evaluate the overall product performance, quality, and production readiness.

Skydio for US Army: a Major Milestone for US Manufacturer

“This is an exciting milestone for Skydio, the Army, and most importantly the men and women who serve our country. For drones under 20 pounds, civilian drone technology has raced ahead of traditional defense systems. With the SRR program, our Soldiers will now have access to the most advanced capabilities in the world in this class,” said Adam Bry, Skydio’s CEO. “Skydio drones deliver unparalleled situational awareness and ease of use in the most demanding situations thanks to Skydio Autonomy. We are proud to work with the Army and look forward to fielding these units, while continuing to pioneer the capabilities that provide our troops with the real-time data needed to successfully and safely complete their missions.”

“The selection of the U.S. Army’s short range reconnaissance provider for tranche 1 is a significant milestone for the Army, our strategic partners and the domestic industrial base. The future for our Soldiers is now,” said Col. Joseph Anderson, Project Manager for Unmanned Aircraft Systems. “The relationships we have formed with industry demonstrate our commitment to compete and our ability to lead and innovate advanced technology in unmanned systems.”

Skydio X2D is the paramount solution for reconnaissance, search and rescue, and security patrol operations, integrating Skydio Autonomy, the world’s leading AI-driven flight autonomy software, with a foldable, highly portable airframe that utilizes extremely durable composites to weather the harshest environments. X2D is equipped with dual color optical thermal sensors, as well as GPS-based night flight and strobe lighting, optimizing its performance for both day and night operations, while offering up to 35 min of flight time on a single battery. Fully developed in the USA, X2D meets the NDAA’s rigorous supply chain security requirements and provides first-rate cybersecurity protection.

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Ian attended Dominican University of California, where he received a BA in English in 2019. With a lifelong passion for writing and storytelling and a keen interest in technology, he is now contributing to DroneLife as a staff writer.