Hail to the Red Phantoms

To recognize teams that take risks, suffer setbacks, and take what they learn to improve Boeing's chances for future success, Phantom Works has established a special recognition program: the Red Phantom Award. So far, there have been two recipients:

The X-50A Dragonfly team

This team was selected for the award in May after one of the two Canard Rotor/Wing technology demonstrators, the X-50A Dragonfly Unmanned Air Vehicle, was damaged on March 23 at the Yuma Proving Ground, the military test range in southwest Arizona. At the time, Gary Gallagher, Director of Phantom Works in Mesa and CRW Systems, said: "So we sometimes have setbacks, but we apply valuable 'lessons learned' to future efforts." An ongoing investigation is working to determine the cause of the mishap and its impact on the program.

The Carnegie-Mellon Red Team

This team, which included Boeing engineers, competed in the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency Grand Challenge race for autonomous ground vehicles in March. Their entry: Sandstorm, a modified Humvee that was the firm favorite at the start of the race from Barstow, Calif., to Primm, Nev. Though none of the 15 vehicles finished the course, Sandstorm traveled 7.4 miles, farther than any of the other vehicles and in the shortest time, before it suffered damage to its front right axle and its two front tires.

"The team made tremendous progress," said Krieger, in presenting the award to the team. "In six months they went from having just an idea, to sending a modified Humvee outfitted with the latest technology off across the desert on its own. That to me represents success."