GA-ASI Aircraft Used During Free-Fall Training Exercise
New use cases continue to be found for General Atomics-Aeronautical Systems Inc.’s (GA-ASI) MQ-9 Reaper, with the company announcing the US Army has been using it to monitor paratroopers and airdrops during a training exercise.
The 7th Special Forces Group (Airborne) carried out a Military Free Fall High-Altitude Training exercise over four days in January, with a company-owned Reaper providing overwatch and monitoring jumps. The exercise took place at Eglin AFB, FL, with the aircraft launched from Yuma Proving Ground in Arizona. Footage from the aircraft was streamed live to soldiers and airmen at Eglin.
The exercise involved combined drops of paratroopers and bundles of materiel deployed using the Joint Precision Airdrop System. GA-ASI said the exercise “provided an opportunity for GA-ASI aircrews to train on real-world maneuvers and tactics that will allow them to better support future DOD operations.”
Between 2018, when it first began operating the type, and September 2021, when its own crews began flying them, the US Marine Corps’ Reapers were used on a contractor-owned, contractor-operated basis.
During the exercise, Special Forces’ Operational Detachment Alpha evaluated the system’s capabilities “in the areas of mission planning, accuracy and overall performance,” the company stated. “According to the ODA, the GA-ASI unmanned aircraft met all expectations to support MFF missions as a real-world capability insertion option to increase troop protection, accountability, and overall situational awareness,” the company added.
“The incredible persistence of the MQ-9 provided overwatch of the 7th SFG operators unlike what could be performed by a manned aircraft,” commented J R Reid, VP of Strategic Development for DoD at GA-ASI. “This innovative use of the MQ-9 supported the goals of the 7th SFG and GA-ASI looks forward supporting future operations.”
