KPax
8th Feb 2008, 18:53
Some good news? On Jan 3/08, the US DSCA announced [PDF] the United Kingdom's official request for "10 MQ-9 Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) aircraft, 5 Ground Control Stations, 9 Multi-Spectral Targeting Systems (MTS-B/AAS-52), 9 AN/APY-8 Lynx Synthetic Aperture Radar/Ground Moving Target Indicator (SAR/GMTI) systems, 3 Satellite Earth Terminal Sub Stations (SETSS), 30 H764 Embedded Global Positioning System Inertial Navigation Systems, Lynx SAR and MTS-B spares, engineering support, test equipment, ground support, operational flight test support, communications equipment, technical assistance, personnel training/equipment, spare and repair parts, and other related elements of logistics support. The estimated cost is $1.071 billion."
The principal contractors will be General Atomics' Aeronautical Systems (MQ-9) and Lynx Systems (Lynx ground scan radar) subsidiaries in San Diego, CA, and Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems in El Segundo, CA (MTS-B/AAS-52).
MQ-9 Reaper UAVs are larger than their well-known MQ-1 Predator cousins, with better sensors, far more payload capacity, and the ability to carry a much wider array of weapons. Britain decided to stand up a Reaper flight in 2007, after early experience with 3 unarmed MQ-9s in Afghanistan proved positive. These aircraft will form the B Flight of a new UAV squadron, while A flight will comprise the existing RAF detachment within the UK-USAF Joint (MQ-1A) Predator Task Force located at Nellis AFB, NV. American MQ-9s recently fired their first weapons in combat, conducting a precision Hellfire missile strike in Deh Rawod, Afghanistan, and following that with a laser-guided bomb drop in the Sangin region. At present, however, the British say they are looking at the MQ-9 only as a high-end surveillance drone to complement their mid-range Watchkeeper Mk450 UAVs and short-range Deseert Hawk and RQ-11 Raven UAVs.
The principal contractors will be General Atomics' Aeronautical Systems (MQ-9) and Lynx Systems (Lynx ground scan radar) subsidiaries in San Diego, CA, and Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems in El Segundo, CA (MTS-B/AAS-52).
MQ-9 Reaper UAVs are larger than their well-known MQ-1 Predator cousins, with better sensors, far more payload capacity, and the ability to carry a much wider array of weapons. Britain decided to stand up a Reaper flight in 2007, after early experience with 3 unarmed MQ-9s in Afghanistan proved positive. These aircraft will form the B Flight of a new UAV squadron, while A flight will comprise the existing RAF detachment within the UK-USAF Joint (MQ-1A) Predator Task Force located at Nellis AFB, NV. American MQ-9s recently fired their first weapons in combat, conducting a precision Hellfire missile strike in Deh Rawod, Afghanistan, and following that with a laser-guided bomb drop in the Sangin region. At present, however, the British say they are looking at the MQ-9 only as a high-end surveillance drone to complement their mid-range Watchkeeper Mk450 UAVs and short-range Deseert Hawk and RQ-11 Raven UAVs.