Tactical Unmanned Vehicle (TUV), User Appraisal Phase I

In June 1996, a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) was signed between the Unmanned Ground Vehicles/Systems Joint Project Office (UGV/S JPO), 3de Brigrade, 3d Infantry Division (Mechanized), and the 2-69 Armor Battalion to conduct the Tactical Unmanned Vehicle (TUV) User Appraisal. In January 1997, after preliminary training, four Surveillance and Reconnaissance Ground Equipment (SARGE) systems were handed off to the 2-69 Armor Battalion scout platoon. A fifth SARGE system was designated to the User Appraisal maintenance float. However, while at the Aberdeen Test Center undergoing testing, the fifth SARGE system was completely destroyed in a warehouse fire. The JPO made the decision to continue the User Appraisal with only four systems and forego the use of a maintenance float. The remaining available system was left at the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command (USAAMCOM) Missile Research, Development, and Engineering Center's (MRDEC) Robotic Integration Laboratory (RIL). This system was used to incorporate system reliability and performance improvements requested by the scout platoon.