General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), in partnership with Saab, an aerospace and defense company, is developing Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) capability for its line of Remotely Piloted Aircraft.
Airborne Early Warning Capabilities
General Atomics plans to pair Saab’s AEW sensors with its long-range, high-endurance unmanned aircraft system (UAS), the MQ-9B.
“High and low-tech air threats both pose major challenges to global air forces,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander. “We’re developing an affordable AEW solution in cooperation with Saab, the leading provider of AEW&C systems, that will transform our customers’ operations against both sophisticated cruise missiles and simple but dangerous drone swarms. We’re also making AEW capability possible in areas it doesn’t exist today, such as from some navy warships at sea.”
According to the company, the early warning systems will offer critical sensing capabilities to defend against tactical air, guided missiles, drones, and other threats.
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“AEW for MQ-9B will augment existing AEW fleets by extending their effective ranges,” the press release says. “It also gives air forces that need AEW, but lack legacy platforms, a powerful and affordable means to counter threats.”
The new AEW offering will span many applications, including early detection and warning, long-range detection and tracking, simultaneous target tracking, and flexible combat system integration.
“We are bringing our exceptional ability to detect and track challenging objects to customers looking to use MQ-9B to meet their specific needs,” said Carl-Johan Bergholm, head of Saab’s business area Surveillance. “This unmanned medium-altitude AEW solution, leveraging core competencies of both companies, has excellent potential to complement our existing AEW&C portfolio and provide customers with yet another cutting-edge capability.”
General Atomics says the MQ-9B is the world’s longest-range, highest-endurance UAS. The fleet includes SkyGuardian® and SeaGuardian® models, the United Kingdom’s Protector, and the new MQ-9B STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing), which is still in development.
