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2023-11-08
UAE Eyes GA-ASI’s Versatile MQ-9B SeaGuardian
MQ-9B SeaGuardian is the maritime-focused sibling of the SkyGuardian remotely piloted aircraft system (RPAS) that has been missionised using maritime sensors. This versatile maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft can seamlessly integrate a centerline wide-area maritime radar, an automatic identification system, electronic support measures, and a self-contained anti-submarine warfare (ASW) mission kit.
In an interview, David Alexander, President of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), discussed how GA-ASI supports the strategic partnership between the U.S. and the UAE, including defence cooperation. He also shed light on the UAE’s goal of acquiring MQ-9B SeaGuardian aircraft from the U.S. Excerpts follow:
What makes MQ-9B SeaGuardian the right aircraft for Emirati security needs?
It does everything the UAE requires for a platform of this kind. The aircraft can fly for a very long time – as many as 40 hours, in some configurations – while collecting very high-quality intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance in nearly every environment. You can operate over land, over coastline, and over open ocean, and also search under the sea. If necessary, you can move from one operation to another on the same mission. It’s incredibly flexible, but it’s also incredibly capable.
How are you able to achieve these flight times? That sounds like many more hours than a normal patrol aircraft could manage.
That’s right. Part of the reason is the aircraft’s design – it’s light, it’s got long wings, it uses fuel very efficiently. Another part is that there are no people on board. We’ve taken the crew off the airplane. So, the pilot is not vulnerable to either fatigue or other dangerous conditions. The crew works from a ground control station. You can set it up anywhere and connect to the airplane via a satellite link. When one set of pilots and crew finish a shift, another group can take over. The airplane didn’t notice! It’s still flying, patrolling, doing whatever is needed to continue the mission seamlessly.
You must get quite a bit of interest in these aircraft from air arms and governments around the world.
We do; we’re honoured by the rate at which they’re being adopted. In the U.S., the Air Force Special Operations Command is flying MQ-9B to develop some very advanced new concepts for unmanned systems. In the UK, the Royal Air Force has received its first aircraft, with others set to arrive in very short order. Plus, we have the Japan Coast Guard; SeaGuardian is transforming maritime domain awareness over Japanese waters. And another very important customer of ours is India, with more countries lined up. I could go on and on, but yes, MQ-9B delivers what many nations like the UAE are looking for.
So, what are some of the mission capabilities that set SeaGuardian apart?
We were talking a minute ago about flight times. The simple endurance of the aircraft is itself a pretty big advantage. For example, you can loiter over a waterway for a long time. And, if you’ve got another aircraft to come and relieve you, you can patrol the area for as long as you want with teams working in shifts. Think about what that means: nothing can happen in that section of ocean, or in that strait, let’s say, without you seeing it. If you see it, you can act on it. Imagine if a ship down there got into trouble. Well, with MQ-9B, you don’t need to conduct a search because you’re already there. You can see right where the ship is. Is it on fire? Are there lifeboats? And so on.
Simply put, MQ-9B takes the “search” out of “search and rescue” and helps speed the “rescue.” Just send the rescue helicopter right over to the point of distress for immediate response. This has already been borne out in the real world and applies in any number of other use cases.
How does the aircraft manage to capture all this?
It has an electro-optical sensor in the nose that can show you high-quality video pictures, day or night. It also has a multi-mode radar that gives you additional ways to sense and observe what’s below. For example, you could get a detailed look in three dimensions of the hypothetical vessel on the surface with inverse synthetic aperture radar. Or you can make maps on land of areas of interest or long routes below the aircraft like roads or railroads. The aircraft can also take aboard any number of specialised payloads depending on the requirements of the mission. These payloads could enhance communications. They could enhance sensing. With so many payload options, the aircraft can be easily tailored to take on many different roles.
On the subject of payloads, will MQ-9B be able to accommodate Emirati-built weapons?
That’s what we’re working towards. Our company is working with EDGE to be sure that the UAE’s aircraft are able to take on board the weapons that the government requires for its missions. I would go so far as to say this integration work that we’re conducting is a historic advancement in U.S. and UAE defence cooperation.
Does that imply a long-term investment by your company in the UAE?
Very much so, yes. The UAE has been flying our Predator XP aircraft for many years, and we value the strong partnership we’ve forged during that time. We’ve built relationships with customers all over the world that necessitate long-term commitments and investments so that they can exploit our aircraft and other systems to the greatest degree, and we can support them every step of the way. That’s true for my side of the business, the aeronautical systems side, but our company, General Atomics, does a lot more than that, and it, too, is planning long-term support for the UAE. GA’s projects planned in the UAE span the most important areas of technological development, including aircraft – which is what we do – as well as next-generation advanced materials and, of course, energy.
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