
“Both the hull and configuration contribute to the Gull
working effectively in common sea conditions." said James
Labouchere, CEO of Warrior Aero-Marine. "Its wave-piercing
ability enables useful taxi speeds for surface operations
and the Gull uses wave profiles to its advantage for take-off.”
he added that the Gull is the first UAV seaplane that has
been conceived and developed for both the coastal and offshore
environment. No other published concept that we have seen
can even approach the Gull’s combination of performance
and seamanship.
New opportunities arise from the Gull combining boat functions
and aircraft cruise performance, and switching spontaneously
between aerial and surface functions. This combination enables
surface work to be achieved at higher speeds than any vessel,
and greater effect is won by the use of aerial detection and
reconnaissance during transit.
These attributes offer exceptional capabilities for sampling,
persistent tracking and observation of surface and subsurface
targets. They will also enable fast remote insertion/extraction
of small secondary unmanned surface and underwater vessels.
Combined with its use from lake, river and shore, and dirt
strips with amphibious gear, the Gull is expected to achieve
tasks that currently need multiple vehicle types and complex
communications. In doing so, the GullL will enable a robust
multi-role solution with a minimum of communications and one-stage
data processing, to then transmit usable information and instruction.
To simplify deployment from ships at sea, the Gull could
use the sled interface also developed by Warrior. Developed
with the support of UK Defence Technology Centre R&D funds,
Warrior developed and tested a towed-sled Launch and Recovery
System. The SledLARS system can automatically launch and recover
a fast-taxiing seaplane UAV (or a USV) from either the beam
or stern of a parent vessel. This can be done while under
high speed tow and on any point of wind. This removes the
need for deck-mounted equipment for either launch or recovery,
enables the GULL to be operated from both small and large
vessels and allows ships’ other aerial activities to
continue simultaneously with little or no interference.