Aerosonde UAS conducts first flight on ESB USS Miguel Keith.

According to a PR published by Textron Systems Corporation on February 1, 2023, the company announced that the Aerosonde® Unmanned Aircraft System aboard the USS Miguel Keith, designated ESB 5, took its first operational flight.
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First flight of Aerosonde UAS on the Expeditionary Sea Base USS Miguel Keith. (Picture source: Textron)

The inaugural mission follows an October 2022 contract award by the U.S. Navy’s Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) to provide unmanned aviation support aboard the ship for up to five years.

The ESB 5 supports a broad range of military and aviation operations as part of the Forward Deployed Naval Force. Textron Systems is tasked to deploy its Aerosonde UAS to provide extended-range intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) services with enhanced mission payloads aboard the ESB 5. The company’s Field Service Representatives (FSR) will work alongside the sailors onboard to provide support for a variety of maritime missions.

In addition to the USS Miguel Keith, the Aerosonde unmanned system supports maritime operations aboard the USS Hershel “Woody” Williams (ESB 4) and two DDG-class ships, bringing the total number of U.S. Navy ships supported by the system to four.

The Aerosonde system has amassed more than 600,000 flight hours while serving multiple U.S. customers and international allies. It is designed for expeditionary land- and sea-based operations in austere environments and is equipped for multiple payload configurations.

About the USS Miguel Keith

The USS Miguel Keith (ESB-5) is a Lewis B. Puller-class expeditionary mobile base in service with the US Navy as of 2021. Miguel Keith had her keel laid on 30 January 2018 and she was delivered to the Navy on 15 November 2019.

The ESB-5 has an approximate displacement of 90,000 long tons when fully loaded, is 785 ft long, 164 ft wide, and has a draft of 34.4 ft.

The ship is propelled by commercial diesel-electric and has a speed of 17 knots with a range of 9,500 nautical miles. She has a complement of 19 officers and 231 enlisted personnel, and features a four-spot flight deck and a hangar for aviation facilities.