A General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) MQ-9B SeaGuardian unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) has self-deployed back to its home base in El Mirage, California, having supported close to 100 flight hours supporting the US Navy’s Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise, GA-ASI announced on 14 August 2024.
Flight operations for this year’s RIMPAC, which is the world’s largest international maritime exercise, concluded on 28 July. RIMPAC 2024, which took place over four weeks in and around the Hawaiian Islands, featured 29 nations, 40 surface ships, three submarines, 14 national land forces, more than 150 aircraft and 25,000 personnel.
The SeaGuardian UAV, a maritime derivative of the MQ-9B SkyGuardian, provided real-time intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) data feeds to the US Pacific Fleet Command Center using signals intelligence (SIGINT) parametrics and full-motion video to the watch floor and intelligence centres for real-time dynamic tasking, performing similar tasks to those it undertook at RIMPAC 2022. This year, however, the SeaGuardian delivered some new features and capabilities, including Long Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) targeting and using a new sonobuoy dispensing system (SDS) to support anti-submarine warfare (ASW) operations. The SeaGuardian was configured with a prototype SDS pod capable of deploying 10 A-size sonobuoys per pod (SeaGuardian can carry up to four SDS pods, or up to 40 sonobuoys) and the SeaVue multi-role radar from Raytheon. Upon dispensing, the sonobuoys were successfully monitored and controlled by the SeaGuardian’s onboard sonobuoy monitoring and control system (SMCS).
As well as the SDS pod and SeaVue radar, the SeaGuardian also carried an electronic support measures (ESM) solution from SNC, an automatic identification system (AIS) and a self-contained ASW system. The UAV also featured a Link 16 Joint Range Extension Application Protocol (JREAP) ‘C’ internet protocol and an integrated Minotaur Mission System to provide real-time sensor data for the various maritime operations centres, ships and aircraft with Minotaur nodes.
“For RIMPAC, the MQ-9B effectively passed ISR [and targeting] information to various surface and air units, such as the Nimitz-class carrier USS Carl Vinson, guided missile destroyers (DDGs), Littoral Combat Ships (LCS), frigates, patrol boats, [P-8 and P-3 maritime patrol aircraft] and numerous other US and foreign units that took part in the exercise,” noted GA-ASI President David R Alexander.
