Northrop Grumman awarded US Army Hunter UAS Support Contract.

Northrop Grumman  received a one-year, $163.6M contract to provide a range of support services for the U.S. Army’s fleet of MQ5B Hunter drones.

MQ-5B Hunter (Picture source: Northrop Grumman)

MQ-5B Hunter is a long endurance, medium altitude, multimission, tactical Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) optimized to provide Army division and corps commanders with a dedicated Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) capability.

The MQ-5B conducts battlefield surveillance using multiple sensors, including its multi-mission EO/IR/LD/LRF/Illuminator and SIGINT payloads. Flying over the battlefield, it gathers ISR data in real time, and transmits it via wideband Tactical Common Data Link (TCDL) to commanders and soldiers on the ground who are able to communicate in real-time via Hunter’s Communications Relay Payload. Hunter’s multi-payload capability provides enhanced situational awareness and the ability to proactively plan and execute decisive combat operations.

The contract concerns Hunter unmanned aircraft system fleet support for operations, maintenance, engineering, re-engineering and remanufacturing. Work will be performed in Sierra Vista, Arizona, with an estimated completion date of May 9, 2020.