General Atomics To Lease SkyGuardian UAS To U.S. Navy

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia–General Atomics is hoping to build U.S. Navy interest in its MQ-9B SkyGuardian uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) through an upcoming leasing program with the service.

Two company-owned, company-operated MQ-9Bs in a maritime surveillance configuration will be used by the Navy later this year in a region with “lots of blue water,” David Alexander, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) president, told Aviation Week on the sidelines of the World Defense Show here on Feb. 8. “I have high hopes that that will spark a lot of interest with the U.S. Navy,” he added.

The company transitioned to production of the MQ-9B SkyGuardian in December 2024 after producing 575 MQ-9A Reapers. The company is currently trying to sell the last five MQ-9As that came off the production line.

Alexander says the improved capabilities of the MQ-9B, including its sense and avoid, due regard radar, de-icing system and other features make the aircraft a more strategic platform than the earlier MQ-9A, which was largely used for overland armed intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). The company is now actively selling MQ-9Bs equipped for maritime surveillance and control and working with Saab on a airborne early warning (AEW) capability.

“The ultimate mission, in my opinion the MQ-9B is the maritime domain, and this airborne really warning, it is going to be huge ... this is not just about overland ISR anymore,” Alexander said. Japan is already using the MQ-9B for maritime surveillance and Germany plans to use its newly ordered eight SkyGuardians to work with its Boeing P-8 Poseidons on maritime surveillance tasks.

The AEW capability will use a modified version Saab’s Erieye active electronically scanned radar. That sensor—which normally sits in a ski box-like fairing above the fuselage on crewed types like the Saab 2000 regional airliner or Global 6000 business jet—has been “cracked into two,” Alexander says. A pod under each wing gives near-hemispheric coverage on both sides of the aircraft, while a centerline pod houses the avionics associated with the sensor.

Alexander believes the AEW-equipped aircraft could be transformative for the AEW market. While there are trade-offs, the MQ-9 has less electrical output than a converted airliner. The MQ-9B with the AEW radar set costs anything from a seventh to a 10th that of dedicated crewed AEW aircraft. Sustainment and operating costs are also significantly lower. The MQ-9 also has four-five times the endurance of those crewed aircraft.

“With no lives on board and automation on the ground, that’s the future right there,” Alexander said.

As previously reported, General Atomics is also proposing the integration of larger, long-range standoff munitions from the aircraft. The company is proposing Lockheed Martin’s Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile, the Long Range Anti-Ship Missile, and the Kongsberg/Raytheon Joint Strike Missile as potential weapons for the aircraft to provide a long-range strike capability. Alexander says the plans are a response to customer interest in such a capability.

“Customers are asking how do they hold custody and do long-range strikes on the surface from a safe haven, maybe like Australia,” Alexander explained.