As a partner with the U.S. Army DoD, RMCI is at the center of the rapidly growing Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) market. UAS can be flown either by a remotely located pilot or autonomously, based on a programmable flight plan. UAS have been a key ingredient to the success in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraq Freedom. An obvious advantage of UAS is the removal of the pilot from the war front. Unfortunately, a common hindrance to these aircraft is an assumed reliability risk. The Shadow 200 has sustained engine failures that have resulted in loss of aircraft in the field. In an effort to resolve these problems, and to be in compliance with the Army’s One Fuel Forward Directive, the DoD has taken steps to replace the Shadow 200 engine with a Heavy Fuel alternative.

As a partner to Weapons Development Integration, RMCI was delegated the responsibility of evaluating a Shadow 200 replacement engine. RMCI bolted various power plants to a static engine test stand and provided everything needed for proper operation (fuel, oil, cooling air, etc). After the engine was mounted to the stand and several check-out runs were completed, RMCI engaged the engine in an endurance test based on a 150 hour FAR cycle. The endurance test was broken up into twenty different 7.5 hour runs. Data from every run was recorded, including the following: RPM, fuel flow, oil pressure, exhaust and cylinder head temperature, estimated horsepower, and other important data. At the conclusion of the test, RMCI performed a teardown of the engine. RMCI wrote a summary report documenting all parts of the test and teardown, including important durability plots. As a result of this effort, the Army was able to make informed decisions about the future of the Shadow 200.