Naval Air Systems Command picks the Pittsburgh autonomy specialist to build an uncrewed Bell 505 with Bell Textron, Moog, and XP Services.
Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Near Earth Autonomy the Medium Aerial Resupply Vehicle – Expeditionary Logistics (MARV-EL) Increment 2 program. The deal funds a prototype autonomous logistics aircraft for the U.S. Marine Corps.
The contract runs through an Other Transaction Agreement under the Naval Aviation Systems Consortium. Near Earth will lead the effort with Bell Textron, Moog Inc., and XP Services. The team’s Uncrewed 505 platform pairs Near Earth’s Captain autonomy with the Bell 505 airframe and Moog’s Genesys avionics.
Why Choose an Autonomous Logistics Aircraft?
The Marine Corps faces growing sustainment demands under Distributed Maritime Operations and Expeditionary Advanced Base Operations. Dispersed forces need cargo support, but crewed aircraft face crew-rest limits and elevated risk in contested zones.
MARV-EL targets that gap with a risk-worthy, cargo-moving asset for the tactical edge. The threshold requirements call for a 1,300-pound payload at a 100-nautical-mile combat radius. Near Earth’s Bell 505 configuration aims to exceed those marks, including capacity for a full Joint Modular Intermodal Container.
Two aircraft can fit inside a C-130 with minimal disassembly, supporting rapid forward deployment.
“The program is to develop an uncrewed aerial logistics aircraft for where the risk and need are highest,” said Lyle Chamberlain, CTO of Near Earth. “We are combining our Captain autonomy architecture with a proven Bell 505 platform to move cargo without putting Marines in harm’s way. To be as intuitive as possible, we are designing the aircraft around existing Marine Corps workflows. Operators will be able to request, dispatch, and manage missions through familiar command-and-control pathways, including MAGTAB and MANGL integration.”
Captain Autonomy Architecture
Captain is a safety-critical, risk-aware, MOSA-based framework. It supports autonomous takeoff, en route navigation, obstacle avoidance, GPS-denied navigation, safe landing, and dynamic in-flight mission updates.
The framework draws on lessons from the Tactical Resupply Unmanned Aircraft System (TRUAS) and Aerial Logistics Connector (ALC) programs. It also extends the same shared autonomy used on the Army’s RUC-60 optionally piloted Black Hawk.
“The Bell 505 provides a proven, OEM-supported platform that is well suited for rapid adaptation to new mission requirements,” said Jason Hurst, SVP of Engineering at Bell. Moog contributes its certified flight-control system, while XP Services provides modification, integration, maintenance, and experimental flight-test support.
Near Earth will integrate and flight test the autonomous flight system over the next 36 months. The program builds on the company’s 13-plus years of work, with more than 10,000 flights across over 140 airframes.
More information is available at Near Earth Autonomy.
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