Uniform Sierra Aerospace launches its NDAA-compliant Arrowhead ’24 drone

Arrowhead ’24 has several hardware improvements over the original model

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Uniform Sierra Aerospace has launched its Arrowhead ’24 drone model, an unmanned aircraft system that improves upon the original Arrowhead model, which has been used by public safety and government agencies, including police departments, fire departments and emergency management agencies across the United States. 

This three-minute video from Uniform Sierra Aerospace shows Arrowhead ’24 in use.

Purdue Innovates Ventures supported Uniform Sierra Aerospace in 2023 during a pre-seed round with a $100,000 investment. In January 2024 the company launched its Panther drone for the marketplace. It also moved to a new production facility in the Purdue Technology Center, a business incubator in the Purdue Research Park of West Lafayette.

Improved performance

CEO Duncan Mulgrew said Arrowhead ’24 is a much higher performance aircraft than the original.

“It’s much easier to fly; training takes five or six minutes instead of multiple hours,” Mulgrew said. “It’s also much easier to build in-house, so we can manufacture more in less time.”

Other Arrowhead ’24 upgrades are:

• A mesh-capable digital radio link.
• 320p/640p thermal camera support.
• 18-plus minutes of flight time.
• Improved indoor/GPS-denied position hold.
• Improved LED floodlights.
• An onboard module bay and expansion connector.

This last feature allows for Uniform Sierra Aerospace-developed and third-party-developed expansions to Arrowhead ’24 capabilities.

Mulgrew said Arrowhead ’24 works cooperatively with Uniform Sierra Aerospace’s other products, including Panther, a drone for use by first responders and in search-and-rescue cases in outdoor settings.

“The Arrowhead ’24 radio can talk to Panther, which can talk to a ground station,” Mulgrew said. “Getting a radio connection into a building with steel support beams can be difficult. Panther can be used as an airborne relay to improve signal penetration into buildings for Arrowhead. Separately, they perform great. Use both, and they can perform even better.”

All Uniform Sierra Aerospace aircraft models are National Defense Authorization Act-compliant and assembled in the company’s production facility in the Purdue Technology Center.

“NDAA compliance means our aircraft are free from components built in countries that would get them banned in states like Florida that are removing Chinese-built drones from their fleets,” Mulgrew said. “NDAA compliance ensures the security not only of our systems but also our supply chain. We have had a much better experience working with American and European suppliers for these critical components, allowing us to build more systems faster and more consistently, which benefits our end users.” 

To request a full spec sheet or free demonstration of Arrowhead ’24, contact sales@uniformsierra.com. 

About Uniform Sierra Aerospace

Uniform Sierra Aerospace is a small but dedicated team of UAS engineers and operators making American-built drone systems accessible and useful for those that need them most. We are fully U.S. based and proudly build our aircraft just north of Purdue University, where the founding team met and where Uniform Sierra Aerospace started.

About Purdue Innovates

Purdue Innovates is a unified network at Purdue Research Foundation to assist Purdue faculty, staff, students and alumni in either IP commercialization or startup creation. As a conduit to technology commercialization, intellectual property protection and licensing, startup creation, and venture capital, Purdue Innovates serves as the front door to translate new ideas into world-changing impact.

For more information on licensing a Purdue innovation, contact the Office of Technology Commercialization at otcip@prf.org. For more information about involvement and investment opportunities in startups based on a Purdue innovation, contact Purdue Innovates at purdueinnovates@prf.org.

Writer/Media contact: Steve Martin, sgmartin@prf.org  

Source: Duncan Mulgrew, dmulgrew@uniformsierra.com