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Kamman helicopters is a fairly small company, compared to Sikorsky, or Bell. But they’ve always managed to design niche helicopters to fulfill niche needs. About 20 years ago, they came up with the design of a small helicopter that would be used for carrying moderate external loads, with no internal carrying capacity. That meant the helicopter could be smaller and lighter for a given power/rotor system, and that more of the lift capacity could go to the load, instead of the airframe itself. The helicopter, the K-MAX, sold fairly modest numbers, but is generally well liked by its users.

A few years ago, Kamman, looking at UAV trends and the US mission in Afghanistan, came to the conclusion that they could modify the K-MAX to operate autonomously, and be used to deliver supplies to remote outposts. And so, they convinced the Marines to give it a shot. I was rather skeptical at first, but it turns out, it did a pretty good job. And every supply mission flown by the unmanned K-MAX meant that either a ground convoy didn’t have to be dispatched (with the ensuing risks of ambush or IEDs) or a manned helicopter mission (which could place aircrew at risk of anti-aircraft fire).

So, now comes the news that the two Marine K-MAX helicopters are at MCAS Yuma, where they will be integrated in testing and training at various ranges in the US Southwest.

The Kaman K-MAX Helicopter is very unique in many ways, such as its purpose and design. It is a helicopter with interlinking rotors whose primary mission is to provide cargo load operations with a maximum payload of 6,000 pounds.
“The most unique thing is this aircraft can fly itself,” said Jerry McCawley, a Chief Pilot and Flight Safety Engineer with Lockheed Martin. “These two particular aircraft were over in Afghanistan for almost three years flying unhanded, and moving almost five million pounds of cargo, keeping numerous convoys off the road, preventing any roadside attacks.”

It should be noted that when they are operated outside of Military Operating Areas, they are not flown autonomously, but rather with a pilot on board. That’s more a matter of FAA regulations that a technical matter, but still, given the density of US air traffic, probably not a bad idea.