U.S. Air Force is acquiring an additional 30 General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper armed drones under a $ 370.9 million contract. These strike U...
U.S. Air Force is acquiring an additional 30 General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper armed drones under a $ 370.9 million contract.
These strike UAVs are USAF's primary unmanned remote ground attack aircraft with secondary surveillance roles and are currently employed extensively in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Pakistan to eliminate terrorist targets.
The new fleet will meet USAF's increased sortie requirements and help arrest the attrition due to crash.
Delivery of Reapers will be completed by May 2019, which will be manufactured at General Atomics Poway, California facility.
The MQ-9 can fly at altitudes of: up to 50,000 feet (15,240 meters) and can carry hellfire missiles and laser guided bombs under wing mounted pylons.
It has an range of 1500 miles and is powered by a single Honeywell TPE331 turboprop engine rated at 900 shaft horsepower.
