The KillerBee UAV is a flying wing with a wing span of 10 feet. The tips of its wings droop straight down, giving it the appearance of a bat or a stingray, but providing greater stability in flight. Unlike a standard "tube-and-wing" aircraft, this UAV is all wing. Every square inch of the surface of the KillerBee has a lift benefit, resulting in a highly efficient lift-over-drag ratio. For its size, the KillerBee can lift as much as 66 pounds. Raytheon hopes to convince the U.S. Navy and U.S.M.C. the "blended wing" KillerBee is the best bet for a small, long-endurance battlefield and maritime surveillance UAV.
In a draft request for proposals, the U.S. Navy set 10 hours as the minimum flight time, but indicated 24 hours would be preferable. The UAVs must be able to cruise at 60 knots and speed up to about 80 knots. The Navy also wants them to run on heavy fuels, such as the JP5 or JP8, typically found aboard ships. Raytheon has also developed a "moving net" to snag KillerBees when they return to wave-tossed ships. The Navy is expected to select its small tactical unmanned aircraft systems and Tier II UAV next spring, which explains Raytheon's push touting the KillerBee's ability to provide intelligence on demand to Marines on the ground or to ships at sea. The entire program is said to be about putting sensors in the battlespace and exploiting the sensors throughout the C4ISR system.
Raytheon's system establishes a battlefield network that links KillerBee UAVs to a variety of Navy and Marine Corps weapon, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) systems. The system relies on tactical radios such as the mini-common data link and Raytheon's microlight netted radio. For Marines, having a KillerBee overhead would mean that Javelin or TOW anti-tank missile operators, for example, could "cross-cue" to combat operations centers and UAV operators to share information about specific targets.