Insitu Explained

Insitu, Inc.
Type:Subsidiary
Location:Bingen, Washington, US
Key People:Diane Rose (president & CEO)
Industry:Unmanned aerial systems
Num Employees:~1,000 (2022)[1]
Parent:The Boeing Company
Footnotes:[2] [3] [4]

Insitu Inc. is an American company that designs, develops and manufactures unmanned aerial systems (UAS). The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company,[5] [6] and has several offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Its unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) platforms—ScanEagle, Integrator, Integrator Extended Range (ER), ScanEagle 3 and RQ-21A Blackjack, have logged 1.3 million operational flight hours .[7]

History

Insitu was founded in 1994 by engineers interested in creating miniature robotic aircraft.[8] It went on to develop the Aerosonde concept for long-range weather reconnaissance. The company derives its name from the process of measuring the atmosphere in situ (in place), as opposed to remotely, by satellite. At the end of the 1990s the company transitioned to the SeaScan concept for imaging reconnaissance from tuna seiners. With the onset of the Iraq War in 2003, SeaScan turned into ScanEagle, and Insitu focused their efforts on military applications. Insitu was acquired by long-time partner Boeing in 2008.[9]

In 2015, it acquired the 2d3 company.[10] [11] In addition to its defense business, the company announced the establishment of its commercial business unit, Insitu Commercial, in 2016.

Products

Insitu, with the U.S. Navy, developed the RQ-21A Blackjack to fill the requirement for a small tactical UAS capable of operating from both land and sea.[12] The Integrator is the standard variant of the RQ-21A. Insitu's UAVs are launched via a pneumatic catapult launcher and are recovered using the SkyHook recovery system.[4] Insitu also provides services and training for its UAVs.

Insitu customer documentation is written to the ASD-STE100 standard.

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Community Engagement. May 24, 2022. October 6, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20221006124439/https://www.insitu.com/about/insitu-community/insitu-community-engagement. dead . Insitu.
  2. Web site: Insitu, Inc. Contact Information . Insitu . June 18, 2008 . May 13, 2008. https://web.archive.org/web/20080513203829/http://www.insitu.com/contact. live.
  3. Web site: Insitu Team . Insitu . May 5, 2022 . December 4, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201204043938/https://www.insitu.com/team. live.
  4. News: Corfield . Gareth . Eye in the sea skies: Insitu flies Scaneagle 3 UAV in first public demo . May 20, 2018 . The Register . May 18, 2018 . May 21, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180521021439/https://www.theregister.co.uk/2018/05/18/insitu_scaneagle_3_first_public_demo/. live.
  5. Web site: About Insitu . Insitu . January 21, 2024 . October 30, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231030054852/https://www.insitu.com/about . live.
  6. Web site: Autonomous Systems – ScanEagle . January 21, 2024 . . November 29, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231129185713/https://www.boeing.com/defense/autonomous-systems/scaneagle/index.page . live.
  7. Web site: Why Insitu . Insitu . 2022. May 25, 2022. May 19, 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220519025151/https://www.insitu.com/about/why-insitu. live.
  8. Web site: Insitu, founded in 1994, produces aircraft for militaries . April 20, 2022 . The Bulletin . en . May 5, 2022 . May 14, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220514222100/https://www.bendbulletin.com/business/insitu-founded-in-1994-produces-aircraft-for-militaries/article_7feeb0f0-c0d7-11ec-a7f3-970542068af5.html . live.
  9. Boeing Completes Acquisition of Insitu . The Boeing Company . PRNewswire-FirstCall . September 9, 2008 . August 14, 2024.
  10. Web site: Insitu History page . Insitu . 2015 . August 27, 2020 . August 10, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200810013924/https://www.insitu.com/community . live.
  11. Web site: Boeing Acquires 2d3 Sensing to Enhance ISR on UAS . April 13, 2015 . Avionics . en . May 28, 2020 . September 14, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200914171447/https://www.aviationtoday.com/2015/04/13/boeing-acquires-2d3-sensing-to-enhance-isr-on-uas/ . live.
  12. Web site: Products . Insitu . May 25, 2022 . June 28, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220628025314/https://www.insitu.com/products . live.