MQ-8C launches from LCS

The MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter, designed to boost intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities for ship crews at sea, has completed a successful first flight from the deck of a littoral combat ship underway. Earlier this month, the Fire Scout took off from the Independence-class LCS Montgomery during a two-week series of tests off the coast of California. The flight came two years after the Fire Scout was first delivered to the Navy and marked a milestone in proving out the reliability and safety of the small drone. A Fire Scout had previously conducted an at-sea flight off an Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer, the Jason Dunham, in December 2015. (Source: DoDBuzz, 04/18/17) Gulf Coast note: Fire Scouts are built in part in Moss Point, Miss.