GA-ASI MQ-9 Reaper

dan_inbox said:
IIRC use of laser for blinding humans has been outlawed looong ago.
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No, use of laser weapons only designed to blind was banned. A laser target designator is still allowed.

But as the LTDs are IR lasers, they're not going to dazzle the pilot. If they're packing enough energy, they're likely to blind the pilot, but at any distance over a couple hundred yards I don't believe they pack enough energy to do that to an unprotected eye. (Also assuming that fighter canopies aren't opaque to YAG lasers, and that the pilot's eyeshade isn't opaque to YAG lasers.
 
It's self-defence, it's their choice whether to bother the asset or leave it alone and protect their eyes. It's like an electric fence, stay away from the fence and you'll be fine. I didn't think the Russians were playing by international law anyway.

Even a laser pointer (30mW) can damage human eyes, and targeting lasers are way more powerful, about 1000x so.
 
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Forest Green said:
It's self-defence, it's their choice whether to bother the asset or leave it alone and protect their eyes. It's like an electric fence, stay away from the fence and you'll be fine. I didn't think the Russians were playing by international law anyway.
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Which is kinda funny, when they're the ones that proposed the Blinding Lasers Ban...


Forest Green said:
Even a laser pointer (30mW) can damage human eyes, and targeting lasers are way more powerful, about 1000x so.
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Yes, I know of an idiot who stared into the barrel of a LTD and blinded himself in that eye. Deliberately stared into it and pulled the trigger himself. "It's an invisible beam, it won't do anything" Something like 500mW of YAG later...
 
A-10 handles weapons to MQ-9 in forward airbase type of operation.

www.dvidshub.net

FORGING HISTORY WITH HOT ENGINES

BATTLE CREEK, Michigan – Airman participated in history-making Operation Bruiser as the MQ-9 Reaper and A-10 Thunderbolt II taxied onto the usually vacant airfield at the Battle Creek Air National Guard Base Friday, Aug. 4, 2023. The aircraft were positioned side-by-side, while maintainers...
www.dvidshub.net www.dvidshub.net

Ladies, a Warthog is definitely the meanest looking hand bag you can now get on the market.
 
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TomcatViP said:
A-10 handles weapons to MQ-9 in forward airbase type of operation.

www.dvidshub.net

FORGING HISTORY WITH HOT ENGINES

BATTLE CREEK, Michigan – Airman participated in history-making Operation Bruiser as the MQ-9 Reaper and A-10 Thunderbolt II taxied onto the usually vacant airfield at the Battle Creek Air National Guard Base Friday, Aug. 4, 2023. The aircraft were positioned side-by-side, while maintainers...
www.dvidshub.net www.dvidshub.net

Ladies, a Warthog is definitely the meanest looking hand bag you can now get on the market.
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A-10 is a funny looking cargo plane... :D
 
www.ga-asi.com

How GA-ASI Is Driving Airspace Integration for UAS

The vision of integrating unmanned aircraft systems, or UAS, into airspace alongside traditional manned aircraft is rapidly becoming a reality. UAS play a pivotal role in accomplishing a wide array of critical tasks, and as our utilization of these systems increases, so does our proficiency in...
www.ga-asi.com
 
Netherlands double MQ-9 initial order to 8 aircraft. Add also weapons capability:

When the Ministry of Defense started the project for the MQ-9 Reaper in 2011 there was no need to arm the aircraft,” the MoD said in May. “However, the threat picture has changed considerably since then. The aircraft must now be able to protect the safety of its own troops.”

The first batch of four aircraft will need to be upgraded so they can be fitted with GBU-12 guided bombs and AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-ground missiles. The additional aircraft are “already technically prepared for that,” added the MoD. The armaments will be ready for an initial deployment in 2025 and fully deployable in 2028, according to the MoD.

The weapons acquisition falls under a foreign military sale with the US government and has an estimated value between $100 and $250 million.
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Netherlands to double MQ-9A order to eight aircraft - Breaking Defense

“We are doubling the number of MQ-9A Reapers so we can increase our maritime and overland intelligence, reconnaissance, surveillance (ISR) capacity,” said Lieutenant-Colonel Jan Ruedisueli, commander of the Royal Netherlands Air Force's 306 Squadron.
breakingdefense.com
 
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https://twitter.com/x/status/1694688610451177854
View: https://twitter.com/GenAtomics_ASI/status/1694688610451177854?s=20


www.ga-asi.com

SOAR Pod

www.ga-asi.com

Key Benefits

  • Enables long-range persistent surveillance of enemy communications and radar emitters
  • Enables cooperative collection and target exploitation capabilities
  • Features real time collection and onboard storage for post-mission analysis
  • Allows for true multi-intelligence target identification and tracking in real time
Mission Sets

  • Tactical enemy order of battle updates
  • Strategic long-range electronic reconnaissance
Specs

Dimensions: 125" x 29" x 25" | 317.5 cm x 73.7 cm x 63.5 cm
Weight: 634 lb | 287.6 kg
Power: 28 VDC, 2.3 kW

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www.ga-asi.com

LAC-12 Terminal

www.ga-asi.com

Key Benefits

  • Open-architecture Laser Airborne Communication terminal that can operate with multiple lasers and modems
  • Anti-jam technology that enables low probability of detection and interception
  • Game-changing user data rates greater than 1 Gbps
  • Tested in airborne, ship-based, and land-based scenarios
  • Podded variant currently in development – flight testing Q3 2023
Mission Sets

  • Secure and rapid communications
  • Communications relay and gateway
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The radar range that comes out of such a low powered machine (same as a medium range turbine general aviation model) is flabbergasting. Add the communication sets, the other sensors and it's mind blogging how they can achieve such.

Let's be honest, the Guardian is 50% of an air force by itself.
French use in Africa, for example, rates it at over 60% of strike missions, over 3/4th of ISR etc... (stats are somewhere in this thread).
 
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TomcatViP said:
The radar range that comes out of such a low powered machine (same as a medium range turbine power general aviation model) is flabbergasting. Add the communication sets, the other sensors and it's mind blogging how they can achieve such.

Let's be honest, the Guardian is 50% of an air force by itself.
French use in Africa, for example, rates it at over 60% of strike missions, over 3/4th of ISR etc... (stats are somewhere in this thread).
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The only thing I don't believe a Guardian can do is Air Policing/interception.
 
https://twitter.com/x/status/1699037236958732793
View: https://twitter.com/GenAtomics_ASI/status/1699037236958732793?s=20



www.ga-asi.com

Sledgehammer Pod

www.ga-asi.com

Crush Enemy Communications​

Sledgehammer is a high-powered electronic attack pod that enables communications denial and information operations. From the wing of an unmanned or manned aircraft, Sledgehammer is designed to simultaneously deny enemy communication networks, disrupt command and control, and deliver information operation messaging. This one-of-a-kind pod augments low-density, high-demand electronic attack assets and supports both legacy and modern communication bands, strengthening persistent information dominance and spectrum warfare on the battlefield.

Key Benefits

  • Augments low-density, high-demand electronic attack assets with a persistent presence
  • Supports legacy and modern communication bands
  • Provides a variety of attack techniques and vectors to ensure successful denial, degradation, and delivery of information operations messaging
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I love that not only will it jam the crud out of enemy C2 but it will simultaneously broadcast psyops messaging, likely pointing out the effectiveness of said jamming. Rather rubbing salt in the wound, that.
 
Forest Green said:
www.ga-asi.com

SOAR Pod

www.ga-asi.com

View attachment 703284

Key Benefits

  • Enables long-range persistent surveillance of enemy communications and radar emitters
  • Enables cooperative collection and target exploitation capabilities
  • Features real time collection and onboard storage for post-mission analysis
  • Allows for true multi-intelligence target identification and tracking in real time
Mission Sets

  • Tactical enemy order of battle updates
  • Strategic long-range electronic reconnaissance
Specs

Dimensions: 125" x 29" x 25" | 317.5 cm x 73.7 cm x 63.5 cm
Weight: 634 lb | 287.6 kg
Power: 28 VDC, 2.3 kW
Click to expand...
L3 Harris datasheet for SOAR.
 

Attachments

  • ims_rms_datasheet_mid_SOAR.pdf
    2.1 MB · Views: 14
www.afsoc.af.mil

Understanding AFSOC’s Adaptive Airborne Enterprise

The 27th Special Operation Wing’s Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) community and industry partners completed several capability demonstrations throughout December 2023 as part of Air Force Special
www.afsoc.af.mil
www.airandspaceforces.com

AFSOC Flies 3 Reapers With One Crew In First-of-Its-Kind Exercise

A single crew controlled three MQ-9 Reapers in a major step forward as Air Force Special Operations Command prepares for near-peer conflict.
www.airandspaceforces.com www.airandspaceforces.com
www.sofx.com

AFSOC Successfully Pilots Three MQ-9 Reapers With a Single Crew

In a significant advancement for the Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC), a single crew successfully controlled three MQ-9 drones,
www.sofx.com
 
Congress has received the notification for India’s pending purchase of 31 MQ-9B SkyGuardian aircraft made by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. The notification triggers a 30-day congressional review period on Capitol Hill.
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www.defensenews.com

Biden administration moves forward on India drone sale

The U.S. and India first agreed to the $3.99 billion sale during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to the White House last year.
www.defensenews.com www.defensenews.com
 

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