MQ-1 Predator
The MQ-1 Predator is a medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system for use in areas where there is a minimal risk to human life. The MQ-1 Predator is designed and manufactured by General Atomics Aeronautical. Since 1995, the Predator has logged more than 405,000 flight hours, more than half of which were during combat deployments to the Balkans, Southwest Asia, and the Middle East, where the Predator operated in support of U.S. and NATO forces. Based on the success of the program, the U.S. Department of Defense moved the Predator program into full-rate production in August 1997, marking it as the first Advanced Concept Technology Demonstrator (ACTD) program to be designated a Type II Acquisition Program. Predators are currently in production for the U.S. Air Force and Italy. The land-based Predator has proven its ability to support maritime forces including carrier strike groups, amphibious ready groups, and submarines. The Predator is the only surveillance system in the U.S. inventory that can provide near real-time video imagery, day or night, in all weather conditions, via satellite worldwide – without the pilot having to engage in combat fire. As the first successful unmanned aerial surveillance program, the Predator provides tactical and strategic intelligence to operational commanders worldwide. In July 1995, Air Combat Command commissioned the 11th Reconnaissance Squadron, the U.S. Air Force’s first operational Predator squadron.
Weapons: Hellfire laser-guided anti-tank missiles and BAT smart weapons..
Design: USA
Accessories: Color TX, information camera, laser target designator and rangefinder, ECM/ESM, moving target indicator, communications relay, C-band, UHF and Ku-band satellite data links, UHF and VHF radios, data distribution system.
SPECIFICATIONS
GVW: 1,035 tons
Altitude: 7,620 m maximum
Length: 8.23 m
Wingspan: 18.84 m
Crew: 1 pilot + 3 operators
On a typical mission, the Predator flies at altitudes of up to 7,620 m and 112 – 135 km/h, with a maximum speed of 218 km/h. The MQ-1 Predator can maintain patrols for 40 hours over a large area, at a distance of 645 km from its operating base. The internal payload is 204 kg plus 136 kg in external stores, with a fuel capacity of 300 kg.
The MQ-1 Predator and its sensors are controlled from a ground station via a C-band line-of-sight data link or a Ku-band satellite data link for beyond-visual-range operations. During flight operations, the ground control station crew consists of a pilot and two sensor operators. The aircraft is equipped with an AN/AAS-52 Multispectral Targeting System, a color nose camera (typically used by the pilot for flight control), a variable aperture daytime television camera, and a variable aperture infrared camera (for low light/night). The ground control station can send visual data via landline to the operational user or to a Trojan Spirit data distribution system equipped with a 5.5m Ku-band ground data terminal dish and a 2.4m dish for data dissemination.
The MQ-1 Predator is an incremental development of the proven GNAT system, using common avionics and mechanical systems and incorporating a 4-cylinder Rotax engine. The production version of the MQ-1 Predator is powered by a turbocharged Rotax 914 engine, producing 105 horsepower.