Look to the skies to see what the U.S. Navy hopes will help carrier air wings and carrier strike groups maximize their air power. The Boeing MQ-25 Stingray is an unmanned aircraft that can act as a flying gas station for the Navy’s F-18s and F-35s. The aircraft can also gather intelligence and has surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.
The MQ-25 is the result of years of engineering and testing. Boeing released a video announcing the project in April 2018. In February, less than four years later, Boeing handed over the first Stingray to the Navy for testing. Now, the Stingray is headed to sea for its first test aboard an aircraft carrier.
“We’re calling this the unmanned carrier aviation demonstration,” Matthew Savage, Boeing UCAD test team lead, said. “To look at how the MQ operates on the flight-deck both from propulsion testing and our human factors evaluation. This is a historic moment for the Navy and for the Boeing Company, because this is the first evaluation of this vehicle’s ability to operate with the fleet. ”
Boeing beat out General Atomic and Lockheed Martin for an $805 million contract for the right to build the Stingray.
Providing all goes as planned, the Navy’s deal includes four more Stingrays for the fleet, with plans to equip all Nimitz-class and Gerald R. Ford-class carriers with the ability to operate MQ-25s.
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