Northrop Grumman and the Navy completed nine initial flight tests of the Triton unmanned aircraft system, the half-way point in a process called envelope expansion. During envelope expansion, the test team validates the aircraft’s ability to operate at a range of altitudes, speeds and weights. The flights are taking place at the company’s manufacturing facility in Palmdale, Calif. Completion of envelope expansion will allow the test team to prepare for installation and further testing of Triton’s surveillance sensors. The Triton test team accomplished endurance flights up to 9.4 hours at altitudes up to 50,000 feet. The aircraft also performed doublets, a maneuver that tests the aircraft’s ability to recover from small perturbations in its flight path caused by turbulence. The Navy plans to field 68 Tritons, built in part in Moss Point, Miss. (Source: Northrop Grumman, 01/06/14)