Prioria Robotics Maveric

Prioria Maveric
Maveric UAV in Flight
Role	Tactical, Squad-level, Hand-launched Type of aircraft
Manufacturer	Prioria Robotics, Inc.

The Prioria Robotics Maveric is a discontinued unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) marketed as a high-performance, next-generation platform for small and miniature UAV operations. Maveric's bendable wings allow for the ability to store a fully assembled airframe in a 6-inch (150 mm) tube.^{[citation needed][1]}

Maveric can be deployed immediately with no assembly,^[2] with a claimed dash speed of 55 knots (63 mph; 102 km/h).^{[citation needed]} Marketed as the first smart, customizable SUAS, Maveric utilizes Prioria's proprietary processing platform, Merlin.^[2]

Maveric is capable of fully autonomous operation from launch to landing using waypoints,^[2] or it can be flown manually by a human pilot via a simple joystick under autopilot assistance.^[3]

Maveric was designed for operation by a single user in a military, tactical setting. To accomplish this goal, the airframe had to be small and light enough (2 lb) for a single user to transport, but with large enough wings (28 in) to support the weight of the batteries, cameras, and electronics sufficient for up to one hour of flight-time.^[3]

To overcome issues of portability and assembly time, designers employed a bendable-wing design. This design allows for Maveric's wings, which are large enough to meet the desired operational requirements to collapse and wrap around its fuselage and be placed in a 6-inch-diameter (150 mm) tube, while remaining in a fully assembled state. This has two advantages. It allows the aircraft to be stored in a small space, and it makes the aircraft capable of immediate launch on removal from storage. The flexible wings were also claimed to produce a dampening effect called "apative washout" that would allow the UAS to be flown in heavy wind gusts.^[2]

The bendable wings and bird-like profile were also claimed to produce an effect of biological camouflage.^[4]

In 2015, Prioria vendor Condor Aerial alleged that Prioria was providing false specifications for the Maveric UAV, selling a hobby-grade drone at a military-grade price and selling refurbished drones as new. The complaint included allegations that the UAV was easily damaged and also consisted of sworn statements by a prior employee who claimed that then-CEO of Prioria was knowingly falsifying information on government contracts.^[5][6][7] A report by NOAA documented that their own Maveric drones lasted over six years without mechanical incident over the course of 4,500 combined sorties.^[8]

Condor won a breach of contract suit with a jury award of $1.5 million on December 7, 2017, and a writ of execution was assessed on Prioria's assets in January, 2018.^[9][10] The verdict was appealed, but the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on January 29, 2018, and the appeal has been on hold ever since.^[11][12]

• U.S. Army – 36^[13]
• Royal Canadian Air Force – 5
• Republic of Singapore Air Force - 20

• Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)
• Miniature UAV
• Micro Air Vehicle (MAV)
• History of unmanned aerial vehicles

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