Following delays, the US Navy aims to fly its refueling drone, the MQ-25 Stingray, for the first time in 2026.
The US Navy and Boeing have started ground tests on the first operational MQ-25 Stingray, the world’s first uncrewed aerial refueling drone .The first self-powered taxi tests took place at Boeing ’s MidAmerica facility in St.
Louis, Missouri, on January 29. They are a crucial step towards flight tests and operational flight tests later this year. MQ-25 Stingray performs first taxi testsThe US Navy had initially planned the first taxi tests to take place in late 2025. It has also stated that it will conduct its first flight test after those ground tests are completed. Delays pushed those ground test back, meaning that first operational MQ-25 Stingray test flight is now pushed further back into the year.Those first taxi tests have now taken place, bringing operational flight a step closer, according to social media posts from Boeing and Naval Air Systems . You can watch Boeing’s footage from the taxi tests below.Though the operational MQ-25 Stingray is yet to fly, an MQ-25 test aircraft, called T1, has performed several significant in-flight milestones. In July 2021, that test aircraft became the first unmanned drone in history to perform an in-flight refueling operation .The design of MQ-25 was influenced by Boeing’s submission to the Navy’s Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike program. UCLASS called for a stealthy carrier-based drone concepts with intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mission capabilities.The Navy’s long-term Stingray plansUnder its agreement with the US Navy, Boeing is set to deliver nine pre-production Stingray aircraft. Five of those will be used for fatigue testing and other static tests, according to a report from The War Zone .According to that TWZ report, the MQ-25 program has faced significant delays and cost overruns in recent years. The program’s initial goal was for the first pre-production batch of Stingrays to be delivered in 2022. Last year, the Navy stated it was working hard to achieve first flight by 2025. “We will fly MQ-25 in ‘25. You can quote me on that,” Vice Adm. Daniel Cheever, Commander of Naval Air Forces, said in January 2025, according to TWZ. “We will fly that platform in ’25 and get that thing on a carrier in ‘26 and start integrating that thing.”Further delays subsequently moved the flight back to 2026. Despite these setbacks, the Navy sees the MQ-25 as a critical future range-extender and pathfiner for future carrier-based uncrewed aviation capabilities.In the long-term, the US Navy plans to acquire 76 MQ-25 aircraft. It currently expects the first of these to achieve initial operational capability at some point next year.
Boeing MQ-25 Stingray Refueling Drone U.S. Navy
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