End of MQ-9 line surprises GA

Chris Pehrson, General Atomics’ VP of strategic development, was surprised by an Air Force plan to stop buying MQ-9 Reapers in FY 2020 although production was to be winding down. He anticipated the AF would phase out purchases over 3-to-5 years as an end to the 363-aircraft program. Instead, the AF FY-21 budget request indicated the service wants only a final 24 MQ-9s, cutting the fleet to 337. Those final Block 5 aircraft, built at General Atomics Aeronautical Systems in California, will be delivered in 2023-24. The AF is shifting investments to improved readiness and increased lethality against potential adversaries, AF spokesperson, Capt. Jake Bailey, said Feb. 26. The MQ-9 “won’t hold up against advanced air-defense missiles and high-tech aircraft (of) adversaries.” The AF wants to spend $302.5M from 2021-23 to close the line, after previously planning to buy 100 more between 2019-23. The abrupt shutdown, without a transition plan, “would jeopardize” Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance, and cause unemployment or layoffs for certain skill sets, Pehrson said. He appears optimistic Congress will step in to change the AF plan. “I think this was strictly a budget drill,” he said. Bailey declined to answer how the plan could affect the AF’s vision of bringing MQ-9s to Tyndall AFB, Fla., in the 2020s. (Source: AF Magazine 02/26/20) Gulf Coast Note: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, an affiliate of GA, is a leading designer and manufacturer of proven, reliable Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) systems. The GA-Tupelo, Miss., Electromagnetic Systems (EMS) division production and test facility supports production of the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) and Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) programs for the next‐generation aircraft carrier class, the Gerald R. Ford (CVN‐78). https://www.airforcemag.com/abrupt-end-to-mq-9-production-surprises-general-atomics/