Airframer
Log in

The Airframer Bulletin

Airframer · General Atomics MQ-9 · General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI)
All news ✕ Clear ‹ Current edition

Every Bulletin story and press release covering Airframer · General Atomics MQ-9 · General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI), newest first.

84 items · page 1 of 2

2026
20 April

ReleaseGA-ASI completes MQ-9B 'Flight Into Known Icing' flight tests

22 January GA-ASI broke ground on a new hangar in El Mirage, California on January 14. Bart Roper and Ryan Elmer of Parkway; Tuan Nguyen, Jim Burghard, Linden Blue and Jesse Armendarez of San Bernardino County; and Dave Hyatt were in attendance.

El Mirage grows to support MQ-9B production and testing

The 85,000 sq fr facility will accommodate SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian RPAs along with Certifiable Ground Control Stations and launch pads

20 January

ReleaseGA-ASI and Calidus sign MOU to collaborate on co-production of MQ-9B and Gambit Collaborative Combat Aircraft

2025
17 November

ReleaseGA-ASI completes full-scale fatigue test on MQ-9B

17 July

ReleaseA new transatlantic partnership for European CCA

15 June

ReleaseGA-ASI announces new PELE small UAS for international customers

15 May The UK’s MTC decision is the first of its kind for a large unmanned aircraft system.

Protector is first large UAS with unrestricted UK military certification

The certification has cleared the RAF’s Protector for unrestricted use over populous areas and marked a major shift in uncrewed system airworthiness recognition.

7 April

ReleaseGA-ASI expands targeting capability for MQ-9B SeaGuardian

25 March

ReleaseGA-ASI completes first flight of Belgium's MQ-9B SkyGuardian

3 March

ReleaseGA-ASI welcomes USAF designation for new CCA: YFQ-42A

3 March

ReleaseGeneral Atomics introduces Quadratix software enterprise

25 February

ReleaseGA-ASI advances sub-hunting with test of new air-dropped sensors

2024
11 January The equivalent of 40,000 operating hours have been completed as part of fatigue testing on the MQ-9B.

GA-ASI completes first lifetime for full-scale fatigue test on MQ-9B

Testing will simulate three lifetimes of operations: Two of these replicate the operation of an aircraft under normal conditions, and the third lifetime has intentional damage inflicted on the airframe's critical components

2023
10 August

ReleaseGA-ASI opens new hangar at FTTC in Grand Forks, ND

3 August

ReleaseGA-ASI Mojave STOL UAS completes first dirt operation

14 July

ReleaseGA-ASI's unmanned aircraft cross 8 million flight hours

24 February

ReleaseGA-ASI performs cold weather validation using MQ-9B SkyGuardian

12 January First flight of the new variant was last November, GA-ASI reports.

GA-ASI confirms first flight of M2DO-ready Reaper

Features of the new variant MQ-9A include improved power distribution and redundancy, GPS improvements, radar altimeters, nose wheel steering, and angle of attack sensor system improvements.

2022
26 September

ReleaseGA-ASI continues work with Conflux in additive manufacturing as UAS leader partners with Australian supplier on Fuel Oil Heat Exchanger for MQ-9B

21 September

ReleaseGA-ASI creates additive design & manufacturing Center of Excellence

2021
9 December

ReleaseGA-ASI announces new Mojave UAS

30 November

ReleaseGA-ASI completes series of system level tests for Protector

10 September

ReleaseGA-ASI flies UAS in the Canadian Arctic

2020
7 December MQ-9B Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) has completed Full Scale Static (FSS) wing structure testing.

Wing testing takes MQ-9B closer to non-segregated flying

GA-ASI reports that the wing of its MQ-9B SkyGuardian has passed three months of static testing with flying colours, matching analytical predictions closely. Testing exceeded 150% of expected maximum loads.

24 November

ReleaseGA-ASI awarded smart sensor contract

20 October

ReleaseGA-ASI selects two Belgian companies following industry presentations at Blue Magic Belgium

19 October

ReleaseGA-ASI kicks off SeaGuardian validation flights in Japan

30 September The Protector will be handed over to the UK's Royal Air Force in 2021.

MQ-9B takes first flight as the UK's Protector

GA-ASI's remotely piloted system has been selected by Belgium and Australia, as well as the UK. It is built for adverse-weather performance with lightning protection, a damage tolerant airframe and a de-icing system.

14 September

ReleaseGA-ASI SeaGuardian takes flight

19 August

ReleaseGA-ASI to host strategic industry engagements in Canada

21 July

ReleaseGA-ASI announces Team SkyGuardian Australia

9 April

ReleaseGA-ASI ferries new MQ-9 to Holloman Air Force Base

31 March

ReleaseGA-ASI completes first production-representative MQ-9B Skyguardian

13 February

ReleaseNASA and Collins Aerospace advance technology for safe operation of unmanned aircraft in the National Airspace System

2019
7 October

ReleaseGA-ASI partnering with NASA to demo commercial mission with a large UAS in Southern California

11 September

ReleaseGA-ASI and UK MoD sign test and evaluation contract for Protector

29 August

ReleaseFour additional Belgian companies join team SkyGuardian

22 August

ReleaseRAF sees GA-ASI demo of new protector capabilities

17 June

ReleaseGA-ASI supports ATC demonstration

16 June

ReleaseSkyGuardian surpasses 100 test flights

3 June

ReleaseTeam SkyGuardian Canada looking to grow

13 May

Release19 companies to present capabilities at GA-ASI's Blue Magic Belgium

9 April

ReleaseCertifiable ground control station controls first end-to end flight

20 March

ReleaseGA-ASI breaks ground on new hangar in El Mirage

24 February

ReleaseGA-ASI continues ontime development of MQ-9B

15 February

ReleaseGA-ASI demonstrates SATCOM launch & recovery for MQ-9B using expeditionary command & control XC2

15 January

ReleaseGA-ASI builds industrial collaboration team in Belgium for MQ-9B SkyGuardian

2018
29 November

ReleaseGA-ASI receives experimental certification on newest MQ-9B SkyGuardian

27 November

ReleaseGeneral Atomics Global opens New Delhi office

2 October

ReleaseSecond MQ-9B SkyGuardian completes first flight