A General Atomics Mojave Remotely Piloted Air System (RPAS) drone has taken off and safely landed back on board HMS Prince of Wales in the first trial of its kind conducted off the east coast of the United States on 15th November.
The take-off was conducted at an angle across the deck and did not utilise the ramp. The longer-term challenge would be to define the safe operating envelope for the aircraft when loaded with fuel, weapons and sensors and operating in less benign conditions. Recovering an unarrested air vehicle without any form of arrestor gear will present an interesting safety case when there are other aircraft parked on deck.
Mojave is a variant of the MQ1C Gray Eagle which is adapted for short take-off and landing from runways even shorter than the QEC flight deck but is a much larger and more complex aircraft. GA has also developed a wing kit for its SeaGuardian derivative of the MQ-9B similar to the Protector that is just entering RAF service. This includes folding wings and STOL-optimised tail and propellers and maybe a better long-term solution for the RN if it decides to adopt this capability.
Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) Remotely Piloted Air System (RPAS) such as these would offer the carrier a persistent ISR capability and could even be armed. SeaGuardian derivative of the MQ-9B has a range of 6,000nm, is able to stay on station for up to 25 hours and has nine hard-points for a sensor or weapon payload of up to 2,100 kg. SeaGuardian can be equipped with a variety of maritime radar and EO sensors and even conduct ASW when equipped with a sonobuoy dispenser.
The Mojave drone is the largest uncrewed vehicle to have flow from a non-US Navy carrier and many international partners are interested in the results of the trials.
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