Between Home Depot and Wal-Mart in Cockeysville, in an unassuming collection of industrial buildings off York Road, Textron Systems assembles the Shadow unmanned aerial vehicle.
Commonly called a drone, the Shadow recently logged its 1 millionth flight hour, a milestone the company celebrated with a party last week for its employees.
Nearly 85 percent of those hours came during combat operations with the company's U.S. and international military clients, primarily in support of U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, where it's used for reconnaissance, target acquisition and assessing damage.
While Textron recently secured a $116.5 million contract for 24 more Shadows for the U.S. Army, the company also is renewing a push into the burgeoning market for commercial drones as military spending ebbs. Company leaders expect commercial contracts to become a fast-growing division, eventually making up about half its drone business.
Read more at the Baltimore Sun
The post Textron Systems eyes commercial growth for drones it makes in Cockeysville appeared first on Baltimore Tech.
from http://baltimoretech.org/news/textron-systems-eyes-commercial-growth-for-drones-it-makes-in-cockeysville/
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