GA-ASI Flies New Multi-Use NATO Pod on MQ-9
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. flew the new
NATO Pod for the first time on Nov. 23, 2022. The NATO Pod is a joint
development between GA-ASI and Sener Aeroespacial of Spain.
The NATO Pod is built by Sener Aeroespacial in Europe to meet NATO
airworthiness standards, while increasing configuration and payload options for
MQ-9A and MQ-9B Remotely Piloted Aircraft produced by GA-ASI. The new product
is designed for international customers that are interested in rapidly
integrating sovereign payload capabilities to achieve specific mission
objectives.
The test flight was performed at the Yuma Proving Grounds using a
GA-ASI owned MQ-9A aircraft.
NATO Pod development was driven by GA-ASI’s desire to provide customers
with a customizable, multi-use pod for carriage of sovereign, cross-domain
Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) sensors for MQ-9A and MQ-9B
RPA systems. GA-ASI is working with Sener and other European suppliers to
integrate their sensor capabilities within this new pod. The NATO Pod is a
flexible, scalable, certifiable enclosure with the structural features to host
wide-ranging mission systems. The pod meets DEF STAN and STANAG certification
standards for airworthiness, including lightning protection and bird impact.
The NATO Pod interfaces with common MQ-9 aircraft power and navigation
interfaces, including the platform datalink connection to the Ground Control
Station (GCS). Customer system integration is based on using a common set of
interfaces to the aircraft and GCS systems.
“This is a truly momentous product design and implementation effort,”
GA-ASI Vice President of Mission Payloads and Exploitation, Satish Krishnan.
“We’ve worked closely with Sener to meet requirements and keep our combined
teams in sync to achieve this great outcome. Our successful test flight allows
us to begin marketing this new capability to our international partner nations
as a way to rapidly add sovereign payload capability.”
Rafael Orbe, Defence General Director at Sener Aeroespacial, said:
“This first flight is the fruit of a long collaboration between GA-ASI
and Sener and we are proud to have contributed to the success of the project.
We look forward to continuing the good work together, which we are sure will
bring us more successes in the future.”
This industrial cooperation effort introduces European manufacturing of
GA-ASI designed mission hardware and opens the door to customer-specified
mission payloads – including technologies that are built outside the U.S. – for
deployment on MQ-9A and MQ-9B. The NATO Pod that was tested featured a payload
built by Arpège S.A.S. France.
MQ-9As are operated by a number of European countries, including the
United Kingdom, France, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain. GA-ASI’s newer MQ-9B
variant has been acquired by the UK and Belgium. Recently Poland announced that
it will lease MQ-9A.
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