Minigun Integration Showcases the Firepower and Versatility of STOL UAS; Highlights Ability to Rapidly Integrate New Multi-Mission Capabilities
SAN DIEGO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / April 23, 2024 / General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) confirms that its Mojave Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) destroyed static targets in live-fire tests on April 13, 2024, validating the system’s battlefield relevance and recording another milestone for the demonstrator aircraft.
GA-ASI partnered with Dillon Aero to mount two of Dillon’s DAP-6 Gun Pod Systems onto the Mojave aircraft. Mojave performed seven passes across two flights during the demonstration, expending around 10,000 rounds of ammunition as the UAS shredded a variety of targets.
"Seeing our Mojave perform this live-fire demo really emphasizes the versatility of the Mojave UAS and what it can do," said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander. "Mojave has the ability to act as a sensor, shooter, and sustainer while mitigating threat environments and vulnerabilities and safeguarding human lives."
Mojave and its short takeoff and landing (STOL) capability has built significant interest in the military and aerospace communities. Mojave is unique: a UAS with significant payload capacity that can perform in areas once considered unsuitable for UAS operations. Its ability to take off and land from unimproved landing sites at short distances as well as operate from aircraft carriers – as it did in November 2023 as part of a demonstration with the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy – is capturing imaginations and changing expectations about how large unmanned systems can be used.
The live-fire demonstration took place at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, and was funded via GA-ASI’s internal research and development budget.
The Mojave technical demonstrator shares common systems and components with GA-ASI’s modernized Gray Eagle 25M, effectively providing an expeditionary Gray Eagle STOL capability. In addition to a wing kit option for Gray Eagle, GA-ASI is planning one for the larger MQ-9B aircraft, which includes SkyGuardian® and SeaGuardian® models.
The actual Mojave STOL UAS with multi-mission payloads will be on display in GA-ASI’s booth (#792) at the Army Aviation Mission Solutions Summit in Denver, Colorado, April 24-26, 2024.
About GA-ASI
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), an affiliate of General Atomics, is a leading designer and manufacturer of proven, reliable RPA systems, radars, and electro-optic and related mission systems, including the Predator® RPA series and the Lynx® Multi-mode Radar. With more than eight million flight hours, GA-ASI provides long-endurance, mission-capable aircraft with integrated sensor and data link systems required to deliver persistent situational awareness. The company also produces a variety of sensor control/image analysis software, offers pilot training and support services, and develops meta-material antennas.
Global Sports Brand U.S. Polo Assn. Supports the U.S. Open Polo Championship
WELLINGTON, FL / ACCESSWIRE / April 23, 2024 / The 2024 U.S. Open Polo Championship® has officially closed out the American high-goal polo season at the USPA National Polo Center (NPC), the sport’s premier destination. The historic tournament was played from March 22 to April 21 and ended with a thrilling win by La Dolfina over Valiente in a score of 10-7 in front of a record crowd.
The U.S. Open Polo Championship is universally considered the most prestigious tournament in the United States and showcases some of the world’s best polo players and equine athletes. The sport-inspired U.S. Polo Assn. brand supported the historic U.S. Open Polo Championship by co-branding jerseys for teams, elevating NPC staff uniforms, umpire outfitting, player prizes, and monetary donations to several charities.
Held at the U.S. Polo Assn. Stadium Field at NPC, the U.S. Open Polo Championship Final was played in front of a sold-out crowd and broadcast to a large global audience across multiple ESPN platforms. Event attendees watched the historic match from the sidelines, in stadium boxes, tailgate tents, the grandstands, or from the U.S. Polo Assn. MVP Lounge, home to the luxurious Sunday Polo Brunch. Sports fans at the tournament also had the opportunity to shop for Official U.S. Open Polo Championship Merchandise, sold exclusively on-site at the NPC Retail Shop.
The action-packed final game on Sunday, April 21, was fast-paced and filled with great plays from the world’s best players on both teams, such as Alejandro Aznar, Poroto Cambiaso, Rufino Merlos, and Tomas Panelo on La Dolfina and Adolfo Cambiaso, Mariano ‘Peke’ Gonzalez Jr., Paco de Narvaez Jr., and Joaquin ‘Pelo’ Vilgre La Madrid on Valiente. For the first time, the rivalry between father Adolfo Cambiaso, on Valiente, and son Poroto Cambiaso, on La Dolfina, faced off in the U.S. Open Polo Championship, captivating spectators as they battled for victory. La Dolfina prevailed in the closing minutes of the 6th chukker, taking home the illustrious U.S. Open Polo Championship title and the highly coveted trophy for the first time in organization history. La Dolfina’s goals were collectively scored by Poroto Cambiaso with three goals, his second appearance in the U.S. Open Polo Championship, Rufina Merlos with one goal during his tournament debut, and a team-high of six goals by Tomas Panelo during his first appearance in the tournament.
"Congratulations to La Dolfina on an incredibly well-fought victory in one of the sport’s most historic tournaments, the U.S. Open Polo Championship. All teams throughout this tournament and others during the American high-goal season at the USPA National Polo Center are excellent examples of sportsmanship, teamwork, and dedication to the sport of polo," said Stewart Armstrong, Chairman of the United States Polo Association. "Thank you to all of our athletes, sponsors, and sports fans for making this another unforgettable season for the United States Polo Association."
"U.S. Polo Assn. is honored to once again support the U.S. Open Polo Championship and promote sports tourism in beautiful Palm Beach County through iconic tournaments held at the USPA National Polo Center and shown on ESPN platforms. This historic tournament is one of the top sporting events of the spring season, alongside NCAA Basketball, The Masters, and the Kentucky Derby," said J. Michael Prince, President and CEO of USPA Global, the company that manages the multi-billion-dollar U.S. Polo Assn. brand. "As another successful high-goal, American season is closed out, we look forward to next year and bringing the sport of polo to even more sports fans and consumers locally and around the world."
Relive the excitement by watching the broadcast of the U.S. Open Polo Championship on ESPN2 on Sunday, April 28, at 8:30 p.m. EDT, as well as on ESPNews and ESPN Deportes in the Spanish language. Check your local listing for air times.
About U.S. Polo Assn. and USPA Global
U.S. Polo Assn. is the official brand of the United States Polo Association (USPA), the governing body for the sport of polo in the United States and one of the country’s oldest sports governing bodies, founded in 1890. With a multi-billion-dollar global footprint and worldwide distribution through more than 1,100 U.S. Polo Assn. retail stores as well as thousands of additional points of distribution, U.S. Polo Assn. offers apparel, accessories, and footwear for men, women, and children in more than 190 countries worldwide. A recent, multi-year deal with ESPN to broadcast several of the premier polo championships in the world, sponsored by U.S. Polo Assn., has made the thrilling sport accessible to millions of sports fans globally for the very first time.
U.S. Polo Assn. has consistently been named one of the top global sports licensors alongside the NFL, NBA, and MLB, according to License Global. In addition, the sport-inspired brand is being recognized around the world with awards for global growth, expansion, licensing, and digital growth. Due to its tremendous success as a global brand, particularly in the last five years, U.S. Polo Assn. has been featured in Forbes, Fortune, Modern Retail, and GQ as well as on Yahoo Finance and Bloomberg, among many other noteworthy media sources around the world.
USPA Global is a subsidiary of the USPA and manages the global, multi-billion-dollar U.S. Polo Assn. brand. Through its subsidiary, Global Polo Entertainment (GPE), USPA Global also manages Global Polo TV, which provides sports and lifestyle content. For more sports content, visit globalpolo.com.
About the United States Polo Association® (USPA)
The United States Polo Association was organized and exists for the purposes of promoting the game of polo, coordinating the activities of its Member Clubs and Registered Players, arranging and supervising polo tournaments, competitions, and games, and providing rules, handicaps, and conditions for those tournaments, competitions, and games, including the safety and welfare of participants and mounts. Founded in 1890, the USPA is the national governing body for the sport of polo. The USPA is currently comprised of almost 200 member clubs with thousands of individual members and oversees 40 national tournaments. For more information, please visit uspolo.org.
Contact Information
Stacey Kovalsky VP Global PR and Communications skovalsky@uspagl.com +001.561.790.8036
Shannon Stilson VP, Sports Marketing & Media sstilson@uspagl.com +001.561.227.6994
The Kingdom of Cambodia and the Lao People’s Democratic Republic have been committed to further promoting their bilateral relations and cooperation for mutual interest.
During their courtesy meeting at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh this afternoon, Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet and visiting Lao President H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith emphasised the two countries’ commitment to maintain their close and long-lasting friendship, solidarity and cooperation, especially in key areas such as energy, connectivity, border affairs, fight against transnational crime, national defence and security, as well as the people-to-people relations.
Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet said that energy sector is important for Cambodia in ensuring energy security and the country’s competitiveness in the region and the world. He thus asked the Lao side to find appropriate measures to ensure a sustainable and timely supply of electricity to Cambodia.
For border affairs, H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith confirm
ed the Lao side’s readiness to work with Cambodia based on the Cambodia-Laos Border Demarcation Treaty 2023.
The visiting Lao president noted that Cambodia has been politically stable and is moving forward in terms of security, peace, economic growth and living standard improvement during the past eight months under the new Royal Government led by Samdech Thipadei Hun Manet.
H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith thanked Cambodia for her support to Laos as the rotating chair of ASEAN in 2024, stressing that Laos will learn from the success of Cambodia who held the ASEAN chairmanship in 2022. Laos also looks forward to welcoming the presence of Samdech Thipadei in Laos in the near future, especially his participation in the ASEAN Summit in October 2024.
A high-ranking Laotian delegation led by H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith and his spouse arrived this morning in Phnom Penh to pay a two-day state visit, at the invitation of His Majesty Preah Bat Samdech Preah Boromneath Norodom Sihamoni, King of Cambodia.
Visiting President of the Lao People’s Democratic Republic H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith has asked the Cambodian National Assembly (NA) to share its experience with the Lao NA, at all levels and in all skills.
H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith made the request while meeting with Cambodian NA President, Samdech Moha Rathsapheathika Thipadei Khuon Sudary, at the NA Palace in Phnom Penh this afternoon, during the former’s two-day state visit in Cambodia.
The Lao president also asked the two NAs to strengthen their active cooperation in order to bring benefits to the two peoples and countries.
H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith recalled the long-standing friendship and cooperation between Cambodia and Laos, who have stood shoulder to shoulder in the struggle for independence for their respective countries. Cambodia-Laos relations are an invaluable asset for the people of both countries, he underlined.
For her part, Samdech Khuon Sudary warmly welcomed H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith’s visit to Cambodia, stressing that it i
s very meaningful and an important driving force contributing to the strengthening and expansion of traditional friendship, good neighbourliness, close and lasting solidarity, especially to the upgrading of bilateral relations to the level of “long-term and comprehensive strategic partnership” that will bring mutual benefits to both countries and peoples.
The Cambodian NA president congratulated the Lao NA on its success in hosting the CLV Summit, and wished Laos more success in hosting the ASEAN Summit and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) at the end of this year.
On behalf of the Cambodian NA, Samdech Khuon Sudary expressed her support to the official visit of Cambodian Premier Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet to Laos last month, during which the two governments signed seven agreements and memoranda of understanding on key areas, including energy, trade, education, tourism, security, defence, and the crackdown on cross-border drug and human trafficking.
Cambodian Senate President, Samdech Akka Moha Sena Padei Techo Hun Sen, has sought support from Lao President H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith to Cambodia’s Techo Funan Canal project for the national development.
Samdech Techo Hun Sen raised the canal project when holding talks with vising H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith this morning at the Senate Palace in Phnom Penh, during the latter’s two-day state visit in Cambodia.
The Cambodian senate president affirmed that the project will not affect the environment or the water flow. It will link the Bassac River to the sea route.
According to a statement released after the meeting, H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith expressed his support to the project.
The Funan Techo Canal project has been carefully studied by experts. This canal is 180 kilometres long and 100 metres wide upstream and 80 metres downstream with two navigation lanes. It would be broken ground for construction at the end of 2024, and is expected to take around four years to complete with an estimated cost o
f some US$1.7 billion.
The canal will link Prek Takeo of Mekong River to the sea in Kep province crossing four provinces: Kandal, Takeo, Kampot and Kep with a total of 1.6 million people living on either side of the waterway.
In the meeting, Samdech Techo Hun Sen and H.E. Dr. Thongloun Sisoulith exchanged views on various agendas as both leaders are old friends and they were both former Prime Minister of their respective countries.
H.E. Thongloun Sisoulith said this visit will further strengthen the relationship between the two neighbouring nations and their peoples. With Samdech Techo Hun Sen as the President of the Senate, he believed that the relationship between both countries’ legislative bodies.
For his part, Samdech Techo Hun Sen lauded the good relations between the two countries and peoples as well as between the Cambodian People’s Party and the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party.
Samdech Techo Hun Sen also briefed his guest on Cambodia’s current development, particularly key achievements in the p
ast eight months under the leadership of the new Royal Government.
