The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) now has two Protector RG Mk1 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) operating at RAF Waddington, manufacturer General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) announced on 22 July 2024.
The second Protector has started its ground trials at RAF Waddington and is expected to make its first flight in August.
The RAF has thus now received 10 of the 16 Protectors it has on order, with the eight other UAVs currently undergoing RAF crew training, test and evaluation in the United States.
The UK’s Protector RG1s are based on the MQ-9B SkyGuardian, which is GA-ASI’s next-generation unmanned aerial system. It is designed to fly over the horizon via satellite for 40 hours in all types of weather and to safely integrate into civil airspace, enabling joint forces and civil authorities to deliver real-time situational awareness anywhere in the world, day or night. The aircraft is outfitted with a Lynx multi-mode radar, an advanced electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor, automatic take-off and landing, and features a longer wingspan than its predecessors at 24 m.
“We’re thrilled to see a second Protector operating at Waddington,” Chris Dusseault, GA-ASI’s vice president for the MQ-9B in Europe, was quoted as saying in a company press release. “The Royal Air Force is a great partner for GA-ASI and we look forward to additional MQ-9B aircraft operating in the UK and more broadly across Europe.”
Officer Commanding 31 Squadron Wing Commander Maccoll was quoted as saying, “I’m delighted to see another RAF Protector assembled at RAF Waddington, thanks to the hard work of our programme team, defence partners, contractors, and the skill of 31 Squadron personnel. This summer Protector will undertake further test and evaluation and we expect more aircraft arrivals before the end of the year.”
Meanwhile, the first of four cadres of RAF aircrew completed their training on 29 April 2024 at GA-ASI’s Flight Test and Training Center (FTTC) in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The GA-ASI training involved RAF Operational Conversion Units (OCUs), which are comprised of eight crews, including pilots, sensor operators (SOs) and mission intelligence co-ordinators (MICs) from 31, 54, or 56 Squadrons.
The scope of the training is focused on foundational skills required to operate the Protector air vehicle and its equipment, including the multi-spectral targeting system (MTS), synthetic aperture radar (SAR), mission intelligence station (MIS), and System for Tasking and Real-Time Exploitation (STARE). Training involves building solid foundations for both normal and emergency operations in relation to intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions, instrument flying and automatic take-off and landing.
Additionally, with the completion of the Protector Technicians course at GA-ASI facilities in Southern California on 16 May 2024, 31 Squadron now has another 21 qualified maintainers. As part of their training course, the RAF maintainers were able to directly support the training flights for their aircrew counterparts, who were completing the live flying element of their operational conversion course from North Dakota.
As well the RAF, MQ-9B contracts have been signed with Belgium, Canada, Taiwan and the US Air Force, while the system is also being operated by the Japan Coast Guard and trialled by the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force.
