General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.(GA-ASI) has been awarded a $93.3 million contract from the Joint Artificial Intelligence Center (JAIC) to enhance the autonomous sensing capabilities of unmanned aircraft. 

The first phase of the contract provided for the maintenance of Navy NMQ-1B remoted piloted aircraft located at Naval Base Ventura County, Point Mugu. The second phase will involve operational training support for pilots to operate the NMQ-1s, which will be used as targets in Navy training scenarios.

The service center is a key part of General Atomics’ European Regional Sustainment Network (ERSN). The ERSN leverages the European supply base and creates new repair capabilities that will reduce repair “turn-around-time” and the cost of MQ-9 support.

GA-ASI has been awarded Indefinite-Delivery/Indefinite-Quantity (ID/IQ) contracts on One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS). OASIS is a best-in-class contract vehicle administered by the General Services Administration (GSA) that provides a common architecture and platform for the acquisition of integrated professional services by U.S. Federal Agencies.

GA-ASI has been active in exploring supply chain and research opportunities in ROK since 2017, with collaborative Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with Huneed Technologies Co. Ltd. (Huneed) and Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).

“This is a great honor for the GA-ASI Gray Eagle team,” said GA-ASI Vice President of Army Programs Don Cattell. “This is a testament to GA-ASI’s commitment to bringing best value solutions to our U.S. Army customer and most importantly, our Soldiers, and we sincerely appreciate Aviation Week’s recognition of the team’s accomplishments.” 

“We were very impressed by the many talented companies that participated in Blue Magic Belgium, and particularly by the innovative concepts presented by the two companies selected,” said Tommy Dunehew, vice president of International Strategic Development for GA-ASI.

The SeaGuardian flights will validate the wide-area maritime surveillance capabilities of RPAS for carrying out JCG’s missions, from search and rescue to maritime law enforcement. 

Massive reductions in emplacement, mission launch time and overall footprint size are in the works for Gray Eagle Extended Range UAS, thanks to new laptop-based interface called Scalable Command & Control (SC2) from GA-ASI.

“We appreciate the opportunity to continue working with the U.S. Air Force on maturing the Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS) construct, which enables JADC2,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander.

“GA-ASI is really excited to showcase the communication capabilities of the REAP pod, which provides the backbone for warfighters to collaborate and share critical battlefield situational awareness,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander.

On September 25^th General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) completed the first flight of the Protector RG Mk1 Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS), the fourth MQ-9B SkyGuardian^® air vehicle (the first three MQ-9B air vehicles are company-owned assets supporting the certification qualification).

The Sparrowhawk aircraft is designed as an airborne launch and recovery demonstrator aircraft tailored to fit GA-ASI platforms, and is focused on Advanced Battle Management System’s attritableONE technologies.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) has been awarded a $13.5 million contract to upgrade MQ-9 Block 1 and Block 5 Remotely Piloted Aircraft for the Air National Guard (ANG).

The goal of the demonstration was to prove emerging ABMS technologies in support of USNORTHCOM and USSPACECOM homeland defense priorities. GA-ASI flew two of its capital Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) and two manned aircraft to support the ABMS demonstration.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI) concluded a set of maritime test flights over the sea-lanes off the coast of Southern California on September 11^th, using the MQ-9B SeaGuardian^® Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS).

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI) has integrated the Leonardo SAGE 750 Electronic Support Measure (ESM) system onto the MQ-9B SeaGuardian^® Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS). The SAGE 750 integration was performed by GA-ASI in partnership with Leonardo.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.(GA-ASI), with the support of SRC Inc., successfully integrated and flew the Air Force Research Laboratory’s (AFRL) Agile Condor Pod on an MQ-9 Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) at GA-ASI’s Flight Test and Training Center in Grand Forks, North Dakota.

This latest joint development effort is a NATO Pod, designed and built by SENER Aeroespacial, part of the SENER Group. GA-ASI will integrate the NATO Pod onto the MQ-9 aircraft line to increase its configuration and payload options. 

18 Belgium-based companies have been selected to present their ideas and cutting-edge capabilities to a panel of GA-ASI technical experts. The panel will evaluate the companies in a virtual interview setting and make decisions on which capabilities can support the development of MQ-9B SkyGuardian^®, the GA-ASI Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) selected by Belgian Defense.

The contract covers the design, development, integration and production of the RPAS with its EO/IR video and SAR/GMTI surveillance payloads, as well as Certifiable Ground Control Stations (CGCS), Portable Pre-Flight/Post-Flight Equipment (P3E), ground support equipment and spares.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI) announced that it will engage Canadian companies to participate in the development and success of the MQ-9B SkyGuardian^® RPAS. Companies with an interest in participating can apply using GA-ASI’s web-based participation request form.

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) is pleased to announce the recent award of an indefinite-delivery / indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract by the U.S. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center (AFLCMC) for the Skyborg Vanguard Program. 

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI), the world’s leading manufacturer of Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS), announces that the industry team, made up of Australian partner businesses assembled for the development and delivery of MQ-9B SkyGuardian^®RPAS for Australia, will now be called “Team SkyGuardian Australia” (TSGA).

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc (GA-ASI) has signed a contract with the UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) for the manufacture and delivery of Protector RG Mk1 Remotely Piloted Air Systems (RPAS). 

“We’re pleased to support the JCG’s goals of validating SeaGuardian’s maritime surveillance performance,” said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI. “We know there is a need in Japan and worldwide for affordable, long-endurance airborne surveillance in the maritime domain.”

“We set out on a mission to demonstrate survivability and capability to the U.S. Army through strong industry partnerships in a cost conscious and affordable way,” said David R. Alexander, president, GA-ASI.

As part of the ongoing U.S. Air Force contract for MQ-9A Reaper modernization, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) demonstrated three expanded Automatic Takeoff and Landing Capability (ATLC) enhancements that provide the MQ-9A with a dramatic increase in operational flexibility.

GA-ASI has been awarded a $12.1 million contract to upgrade MQ-9 Block 1 and Block 5 Remotely Piloted Aircraft and Block 25 Dual Control Module Ground Control Station and Block 30 Ground Control Station (GCS) for the Air National Guard (ANG).

“GA-ASI and Conflux are developing novel and state-of-the-art thermal solutions for application to our existing and next generation RPAS. This will allow enhanced endurance and lower manufacturing cost, as well as more flexibility in our product design and integration,” said Linden Blue, GA-ASI CEO.

SAN DIEGO – 16 April 2020 – On March 20, 2020, U.S. Marine Corps (USMC) pilots and sensor operators from Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 1 (VMU-1) conducted their first operational flight of an MQ-9A Reaper Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) in the Middle East. The multi-sensor reconnaissance-equipped MQ-9A UAS produced by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.

“GA-ASI continues to lead the charge towards enabling large unmanned aircraft to fly in the NAS,” said David R. Alexander, president, GA-ASI. “Our efforts, along with other partners, are gaining momentum and successfully flying the MQ-9 to our U.S. Air Force customer further demonstrates the safety and efficiency of RPA flight in the broader airspace.”

GA-ASI demonstrated ways in which SkyGuardian can be used for a variety of commercial and public services applications, using its onboard sensors. Services featured in the demo included inspections of hundreds of miles of rail, power line, communication and canal infrastructure, agriculture monitoring and topological surveys, as well as wildfire and flood monitoring.

“With first flight of the production-representative aircraft, we remain on schedule for delivering MQ-9B Protector to the RAF,” said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI. Protector RG Mk1 is being procured for the UK Royal Air Force’s configuration of SkyGuardian.

“The Predator Mission Trainer will be used to advance the quality and capability of our RPA training at the FTTC,” said David R. Alexander, President, GA-ASI. “The PMT will increase training efficiency because it allows us to focus our training and repeat training events in the simulator more easily than on an actual flight system.”

“Our Detect and Avoid System has been extensively tested and not only meets, but exceeds the capabilities of the air traffic awareness and avoidance systems used on today’s commercial airliners,” said David R. Alexander, president, GA-ASI.

“We’re pleased to have SABCA as our supplier for MQ-9B SATCOM radomes,” said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI. “This is a complex, major component of the MQ-9B airframe, subject to strict manufacturing process requirements characteristic of type-certified aircraft production. I’m confident that SABCA is up to the task.”

When integrated onto the MQ-9 Predator^® B series of RPAS, the WESCAM MX-20 EO/IR system will support Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) and Precision Guided Munitions (PGM) missions.

The BMB event strives to increase the number of small and medium size Belgian companies that can provide research and development (R&D) and innovation to support GA-ASI. GA-ASI hopes to partner and potentially invest in Belgian companies with aerospace and defense technology

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA?ASI) has successfully ground tested its Airborne Laser Communication System (ALCoS) by establishing a link with a satellite in Geo-synchronous Earth Orbit (GEO).

The second in a series of demonstrations, GA-ASI partnered with industry to integrate best-of-breed long-range ISR payloads and Air Launch Effects (ALEs) on the GE-ER. The aircraft showed a persistent stand-off capability with up to 40 hours of endurance that Commanders can leverage to orchestrate forces in the Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) environment.

During the event, the Andalucían companies learned about GA-ASI’s procurement process and supply chain dynamics, and presented their capabilities for potential support for GA-ASI RPA programs.

Cobham Services Australia announced a five-year extension to the Teaming Agreement between GA-ASI and Cobham to introduce Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) into Australia.

The flight series will continue in 2020 and show that a GE-ER equipped with long-range sensors and Air Launched Effects (ALE) is able to Detect, Identify, Locate and Report (DILR) targetable data to support Long Range Precision Fires (LRPF) systems.

“We were honored to have the HAF’s and the HCG’s support for these flight demonstrations with our MQ-9,” said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI. “The MQ-9 RPAS is already a strategic asset for NATO countries, providing mission persistence and interoperability between allies. We showcased MQ-9s maritime surveillance and the civil airspace integration capabilities for our European customers.” The MQ-9 configuration demonstrated is operational in the U.S.