To see what the future of warfare looks like, one should examine the MQ-9A Reaper, the longtime workhorse unmanned aerial system used daily by the U.S. military and its allies worldwide. While many view the MQ-9A strictly through the lens of an ISR/strike platform suitable for the counter-terrorism fight in a permissive or uncontested airspace environment, the reality is that this prized platform also represents the vision of future UAS, offering significant but still not-yet-fully exploited opportunity in today’s fight and tomorrow’s threat.
This Breaking Defense Pathfinder examines why the MQ-9 platform of choice is getting better, a system for the immediate and the future. With a host of upgrades and configurations poised to push the MQ-9A Reaper, a system that so many know and trust, into areas and missions not yet seen. And with the potential to save billions of dollars in mission costs and manpower.