UK MQ-9 Reaper Designation?
 

Dear Royal Air Warriors,

As a Civvie pilot it just struck me tonight reading the news report of the imminent Reaper deployment to Iraq that I have never seen a "Role.Mark" designation attached to the Reaper in RAF service (such as GR.4 or F.4). Is it officially designated any other way than the "Reaper" in the UK? Is there a UK designation to signify a Remotely Piloted Aircraft?

Just curious.

http://www.raf.mod.uk/equipment/reaper.cfm

I thought that along with various other capabilties (Sentinel - Shadow etc) that Reaper was still a UOR platform and had not been taken into Core. If that is still the case, are they not operating outside of the UOR mandate for procurement?

Google is a wonderful thing.

Sentinel was never UOR

RAF - Sentinel R1

I still recall the confusion of a military chap in an embassy when confronted with dip clear requests for Nimrod R1, Sentinel R1, and Shadow R1.

Never liked the raf way of designating stuff, the Americans have always done it so much better.

Really? They have their way and we have ours. They have an EC-135, a KC-135, an RC-135 and a WC-135. On top of that there is a KC-135A, KC-135B, KC-135D, KC-135E etc etc. I've never had a problem with "our" way; its not exactly confusing - Sentinel, Shadow and Nimrod all being different aircraft. Thank God the embassy bloke wasn't around when we had Valiant B2, Victor B2, Canberra B2 and Vulcan B2 all around together! :rolleyes:

Sadly, the RAF website doesn't even get the US designation right, it should be "MQ-9A Reaper", not "Reaper MQ9A".

In theory the British designation might be "Reaper D1", if anyone had cared to give it one.

D1? Why not GR1, considering it does ground attack and reconnaissance as its primary roles....?

Would it not be Reaper DGR Mk 1?

"In theory the British designation might be "Reaper D1", if anyone had cared to give it one".


Surely the designation should be Reaper DGR1? (Unmanned Air vehicle, Ground Attack, Reconnaissance).

"D" is the existing prefix for "drones", although, admittedly, previous examples of its usage have all been target drones, AFAIK, so whoever is responsible for this kind of thing at the MoD could, of course, use or indeed invent a different prefix for the role the Reaper performs if they so desired...

D of course, is "pilotless aircraft" which Reaper certainly is, so DGR seems most appropriate.

The last CAS may disagree with you on that; Reaper is not "pilotless", but "remotely piloted" :E

Time to bring back the former 'U' designation? UK designation letters only ever have the meaning that applies to that one particular aircraft anyway. (How many different uses for 'A' for example?).

As far as I know the C-17 has never received a UK mark designation either.

Only 1 (according to Wiki):

A Airborne (paratroop transport) Halifax A.VII

Yes, always - until they reached the F-117!

Yes Google is a wonderful thing, and since a Google search did not reveal any UK format designation, only the US "MQ-9A" and the name "Reaper" I thought I'd ask somewhere where people might actually come into contact with the thing. My apologies for thinking I could get an answer from this forum that didnt involve a condescending a$$hole or two chiming in.

I hope none of you ever have a question about the airline business. :ugh:

To the other responders, thank you.

Nick

I would also guess that as the MQ-9 was bought as an urgent operational requirement (UOR) for Afghanistan that is why it hasn't got a UK Mil designator. Similarly as the C-17 was (originally) only a lease then we probably decided not to call it the Globemaster C Mk 1. Not sure what happened in the case of the Shadow R Mk 1 though. :uhoh:

[quoteMy apologies for thinking I could get an answer from this forum that didnt involve a condescending a$$hole or two chiming in.
][/quote]

Don't apologise son, you're fitting in just fine...
:ugh: