Oshkosh Defense to pilot drone manufacturing

Oshkosh Defense has partnered with Grid Aero to prototype a manufacturing process for the company's uncrewed cargo aircraft, announcing the arrangement on November 2. The collaboration applies Oshkosh's supply-chain management and life-cycle support experience to efforts to build and field military unmanned aircraft more quickly. Grid Aero's Lifter Lite design has a company-stated payload of approximately 2,000 pounds and range of up to 2,000 nautical miles, with a 450-square-foot cargo area. The company anticipates prices from roughly $500,000 for smaller aircraft to $3 million for larger designs, while the partnership remains a manufacturing-development initiative rather than an announced military production order.