The Martin Marietta Model 845 was a remotely piloted aircraft developed in the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s for use as a communications relay in the Vietnam War.
Design and development
Two prototypes were built as part of the United States Air Force's
Compass Dwell
A compass is a device that shows the cardinal directions used for navigation and geographic orientation. It commonly consists of a magnetized needle or other element, such as a compass card or compass rose, which can pivot to align itself with ...
program, these machines also being based on a
Schweizer SGS 1-34
The Schweizer SGS 1-34 is a United States Standard Class, single-seat, high-wing glider built by Schweizer Aircraft of Elmira, New York.Said, Bob: ''1983 Sailplane Directory, Soaring Magazine'', page 32. Soaring Society of America, Nove ...
sailplane and similar in configuration to the competing
XQM-93 design by
Ling-Temco-Vought
Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV) was a large American conglomerate which existed from 1961 to 2000. At its peak, it was involved in aerospace, airlines, electronics, steel manufacturing, sporting goods, meat packing, car rentals, and pharmaceuticals, am ...
. Test flights began in April 1972; during testing, one of the prototypes stayed aloft for almost 28 hours,
however it failed to meet the Air Force's requirement of a service ceiling.
[''Aviation Week & Space Technology'', Volume 98 (1973)]
page 67
/ref> In 1973 The Model 845A was cancelled (along with the XQM-93), the program being replaced by Compass Cope.
Surviving airframes
After the cancellation of the program, two 845 airframes were transferred by the Office of Naval Research
The Office of Naval Research (ONR) is an organization within the United States Department of the Navy responsible for the science and technology programs of the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps. Established by Congress in 1946, its mission is to plan ...
to New Mexico Tech
The New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (New Mexico Tech and formerly New Mexico School of Mines) is a public university in Socorro, New Mexico. It offers over 30 bachelor of science degrees in technology, the sciences, engineering, man ...
for use by the Langmuir Laboratory for Atmospheric Research
The Langmuir Laboratory for Atmospheric Research is a scientific laboratory studying the cloud processes that produce lightning, hail, and rain, located in the Magdalena Mountains of central New Mexico. The lab is operated by the New Mexico Inst ...
, where they currently remain. Airframe 845A, which was converted into a piloted aircraft, was later used as a platform for atmospheric research. It continued flying as SPTVAR (Special Purpose Test Vehicle for Atmospheric Research) until the late 1990s. Its missions included flights over the Langmuir Laboratory facility in south-central New Mexico, flying through thunderstorms and making measurements of the electric field inside clouds.
Specifications (variant)
See also
References
* This article contains material that originally came from the web articl
''Unmanned Aerial Vehicles''
by Greg Goebel, which exists in the Public Domain.
External links
{{Martin aircraft
845
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Year 845 ( DCCCXLV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar.
Events
By place Byzantine Empire
* Byzantine–Arab War: A prisoner exchange occurs between the Byzant ...
1970s United States special-purpose aircraft
Unmanned aerial vehicles of the United States
Cancelled military aircraft projects of the United States
Aircraft first flown in 1972
High-wing aircraft
Single-engined tractor aircraft