Over 85 Percent Of All Missions Flown In Combat

The Predator-series UAS has reached a historic milestone, with combat missions over the past weekend pushing the aircraft family over the one million flight hours mark, General Atomics Aeronautical announced last week. The total encompasses just under 80,000 total missions, with over 85-percent of all missions flown in combat.

Predator

"The business of GA-ASI is the development of transformational systems which deliver paradigm changing results," said J. Neal Blue, Chairman and CEO, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. "The achievement of this historic milestone is a testament to the success enjoyed by Predator-series unmanned aircraft systems - clearly one of the game changers and life savers of the day."

The identification of the specific aircraft and customer that achieved the milestone will not be known until mid-May due to delayed flight hours reporting from the field. Predator-series UAS are in constant daily operations supporting the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, NASA, the Italian Air Force, the U.K.'s Royal Air Force, and other customers. Over 400 aircraft have been produced since the first Predator UAS took flight in 1994, including Predator A, I-GNAT ER/Sky Warrior Alpha, Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper, Sky Warrior, and Predator C Avenger, among others.

On Display At Oshkosh

"This combined customer accomplishment reflects the high demand that in-theater commanders have for the Predator product, as well as the exceptional contributions of our employees, suppliers, and partners," said Frank Pace, newly appointed president of GA-ASI's Aircraft Systems Group.

Predator-series flight hours have seen tremendous growth in recent years, with annual totals increasing from 80,000 hours in 2006, to 130,000 hours in 2007, 235,000 hours in 2008, and 295,000 hours in 2009. The one million flight hours milestone also comes at a time of great synergy for GA-ASI and its major customers, with the U.S. Air Force announcing on March 12 that it has surpassed 700,000 flight hours for the MQ-1B Predator UAS and the U.S. Army revealing that it is on track to mark one million flight hours for its UAS inventory this month.

Predator Avenger

"As Col. Greg Gonzalez and Maj. Gen. James Myles noted in announcing the Army's upcoming UAS flight hours milestone, the real achievement is what one million represents - one million hours of operating a technology that keeps our soldiers safer and enables them and their commanders to see the enemy and themselves in ways they never could before," added Pace.

Predator-series aircraft are currently logging nearly 30,000 flight hours a month supporting U.S. coalition forces in combat and with homeland security requirements.

FMI: www.army.mil