Following two requests for information tied to a potential replacement for the MQ-9 Reaper, some in the defense industry say the Air Force is training an eye on future threats and prioritizing survivability as officials continue to weigh their options.
With the service moving away from a direct follow-on to the MQ-9, which had been termed “MQ-Next,” the latest RFI released in the spring, combined with comments Air Force officials have made since about finding a future system that could fit into the broader force design, reflects early efforts toward creating a family of unmanned aerial systems featuring a mix of platforms and capabilities.
Steve Fendley, president of Kratos’ unmanned systems division, said the service’s latest request from earlier this year -- which he noted includes mentions of a broad range of missions, reusable systems, highly contested environments and more -- “really dialed into what [the Air Force is] trying to solve” in this realm.
“I think with the first round, you could easily conclude that it was continuing to buy exactly what the system has fielded in today,” he told Inside Defense in a recent interview, referencing the first RFI released in the summer of 2020. “I think the update really extended the envelope on that and suddenly we’re looking a lot more at the future threat. We’re looking at the contested environments. We’re looking at places where we don’t fully control the air space. And we’re looking for affordability.”
Kratos is among the companies that submitted responses for the first RFI last summer, Aviation Week previously reported. Fendley declined to comment on whether Kratos submitted a response to the second RFI, though Air Force Materiel Command spokesman Brian Brackens told Inside Defense in mid-August “most of the responses received . . . were from companies that also responded to the initial RFI in July 2020."
Still, the service remains in the market research stage surrounding a potential MQ-9 follow-on, and as of mid-August, officials were combing through the more than 60 responses received tied to the second RFI, Brackens said at the time. That work is balanced by continued efforts to upgrade the existing fleet of drones, including a suite of updates called the MQ-9 multidomain operation configuration, or M2DO.
C. Mark Brinkley, spokesman for General Atomics, which makes the Reaper, said in an interview the two RFIs show the Air Force is “exploring what’s out there.”
The company last fall shared with Inside Defense an overview of the next-generation platform it had pitched to replace the MQ-9, a plan that included leveraging open architecture and advanced propulsion, among other things, to bolster cross-domain communication. Brinkley confirmed last month to Inside Defense that General Atomics had responded to both RFIs.
“There are no immediate requirements coming out of these; it’s the long-term vision from the Air Force to get to what’s next,” he said of the notices. “From our point of view, the MQ-9 represents that aircraft, a persistent multi-role workhorse for daily use.”
The latest notice stated the Air Force is seeking to field an initial capability package by 2026 or 2027, with follow-on capabilities by 2030.
Brinkley noted that by pursuing a family of systems approach, which he stressed could include an MQ-9 and a series of other deployable, small unmanned aerial systems, the Air Force “wants to buy four things that do 25 things each, not one that does 100.”
That family of systems route, Fendley said, also allows the Air Force to optimize capability versus cost for any particular mission. In this case, the area where he suspects that “more is needed right now” is survivability -- something he added becomes more critical if one doesn’t own the airspace being occupied, “no matter how good your offensive capability is.”
“If you can’t get to the range where that sensor becomes practical and useful, then all bets are off,” he noted.
The MQ-9 is traditionally used for counter-violent extremist organization combat operations, particularly in U.S. Central Command’s areas of operation, though it’s now taking on nontraditional missions in what officials call the “gray zone.” That includes the recently begun active-duty operated MQ-9 missions in Romania through the 25th Attack Group, Col. Michael Jiru, senior material leader at the Medium Altitude UAS Division, told reporters over the summer.
Moving forward, Brinkley said he sees conversations surrounding an MQ-9 follow-on not based on the “issue of what’s next, but what else.”
“The defense industry wants to help the government have unique options and tools,” he said.