Ground and Flight Testing to Commence This Fall
SAN DIEGO – 7 September 2016 – General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA‑ASI), a leading manufacturer of Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) systems, radars, and electro-optic and related mission systems solutions, today announced that aircraft integration of its new Certifiable Predator® B (CPB) RPA system has been completed at the company's Poway, Calif., production facility and that the aircraft has been shipped to its Gray Butte Flight Operations facility near Palmdale, Calif., in preparation for developmental testing.
"The completion of aircraft integration for the CPB aircraft is an important step in our progression toward building a certifiable system," said David R. Alexander, president, Aircraft Systems, GA-ASI. "CPB is a key product in our effort to introduce RPA into non-segregated civilian airspace and will be the baseline configuration for the UK Protector Program."
Upon successful completion of ground and taxi tests, initial flight testing will commence at Gray Butte in November under an Experimental Certification from the FAA, after which the aircraft will be shipped to the U.S. Army's Yuma Proving Grounds (YPG) facility, Ariz., for continued flight testing. Subsequent events will include sensor payload testing and endurance flights.
GA-ASI is undertaking an Independent Research and Development (IRAD) effort to design, develop, and produce CPB, a variant of its Predator B RPA that is fully compliant with NATO's UAV SYSTEM AIRWORTHINESS REQUIREMENTS (defined in STANAG 4671) and, through work with the UK, also is compliant with UK's DEFSTAN 00-970. Additionally, the company is developing a maritime version that is equipped with a surface search radar centerline pod called Guardian ER. Guardian ER is a non-weaponized, maritime Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) CPB variant that will provide maritime and coastal surveillance. CPB's much increased payload capacity lends itself to support a wide variety of mission sets and will be offered in several configurations.
Photos of Certifiable Predator B in production are available to qualified media outlets from the GA-ASI media contact listed below.
About GA-ASI
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., an affiliate of General Atomics, delivers situational awareness by providing remotely piloted aircraft systems, radar, and electro-optic and related mission systems solutions for military and commercial applications worldwide. The company's Aircraft Systems business unit is a leading designer and manufacturer of proven, reliable RPA systems, including Predator A, Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper®, Gray Eagle, the new Predator C Avenger®, and Predator XP. It also manufactures a variety of state-of-the-art digital GCS, including the next-generation Advanced Cockpit GCS, and provides pilot training and support services for RPA field operations. The Mission Systems business unit designs, manufactures, and integrates the Lynx® Multi-mode Radar and sophisticated Claw® sensor control and image analysis software into both manned and remotely piloted aircraft. It also focuses on providing integrated sensor payloads and software for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft platforms and develops high energy lasers, electro-optic sensors, and meta-material antennas. For more information, please visit www.ga-asi.com.
Predator, Reaper, Lynx, and Claw are registered trademarks of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.
For more information contact:
Media Relations
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.
+1 (858) 312-2294
ASI-MediaRelations@ga-asi.com