Australia's MQ-9B SkyGuardian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are set to achieve initial operating capability (IOC) by the middle of this decade. The announcement was made by an Australia Department of Defence (DoD) spokesperson who told tha.
US State Department clears Australia to buy MQ-9B drones 2 hours ago
An MQ-9B SkyGuardian lands at General Atomics facility in Gray Butte, Calif., on Aug. 16, 2017. (General Atomics) WASHINGTON The U.S. State Department on Friday approved a $1.6 billion foreign military sale of MQ-9B drones for Australia. The package includes up to 12 MQ-9B aircraft made by General Atomics, as well as Honeywell engines, ground control stations, training simulators, and various satellite terminals and communications equipment necessary for the MQ-9 pilot and sensor operator to control the drone from a remote location. It also contains a suite of sensors and weapons, predominantly manufactured by Raytheon Technologies, Lockheed Martin and Leonardo. Those include Raytheon’s Multi-Spectral Targeting System-D electro-optical/infrared sensors; Lynx AN/APY-8 synthetic aperture radars; Leonardo’s SAGE 750 electronic support measure system; Rio communication intelligence systems; and six Joi