General Atomics to Arm MQ-9B Drones with Long-Range Weapons

- The specific munitions being integrated are heavy, long-range standoff weapons traditionally carried by strike fighters and bombers: the Lockheed Martin JASSM (Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile), the LRASM (Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile), and the Kongsberg/Raytheon JSM (Joint Strike Missile). - This upgrade is a direct response to military demand for platforms that can strike targets from vast distances, particularly across the air and sea spaces of the Western Pacific. The operational concept involves the MQ-9B loitering outside an adversary's air defense range to act as a persistent "missile truck." - The MQ-9B SkyGuardian has a payload capacity of 4,750 pounds (2,155 kg) distributed across nine hardpoints, a 79-foot wingspan, and an endurance of over 40 hours, depending on its configuration. This combination of payload and endurance is what makes the integration of these heavier, long-range weapons feasible. - General Atomics has already conducted performance analytics and computer modeling to ensure the MQ-9B's stability and range can accommodate these large weapons and plans to conduct the first flight with one of the missiles as early as 2026. - The MQ-9B is the latest evolution of the Predator drone family and was engineered to be certifiable to fly in civilian airspace, which distinguishes it from its predecessors. It incorporates automatic takeoff and landing and a GA-ASI-developed "Detect and Avoid System." - This weaponization effort is one of several mission expansions for the platform, which is also being adapted for roles like Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), Airborne Early Warning (AEW), and as a platform for directed-energy (laser) weapons. - The MQ-9B has a significant and growing international operator base, with sales contracts in place with countries including the United Kingdom (which calls it the Protector RG Mk1), Canada, India, Japan, Taiwan, and Germany.