US Navy receives its fourth MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance drone

News, US June 24, 2023 , by IRIA No Comments

U.S. defense manufacturer Northrop Grumman delivered the fourth maritime unmanned surveillance and reconnaissance drone, MQ-4C Triton, to the U.S. Navy ahead of initial operational capability.

According to the Northrop Grumman statement, the delivery completed the set of aircraft for Unmanned Patrol Squadron (VUP) 19’s establishment of the first operational orbit, while a second orbit is preparing for delivery this summer.

“With three orbits planned around the globe, the Triton multi-intelligence uncrewed aircraft will provide 24/7 unprecedented maritime awareness,” the company’s statement highlighted.

Northrop Grumman first introduced MQ-4C UAV in May 2018. The U.S. Navy is the main operator of MQ-4C Triton and the program calls for a total number of 68 MQ-4C Triton aircraft. Royal Australian Air Force also placed an order for 3 Triton UAVs, which will be delivered in 2024.

The high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) unmanned aircraft system is designed specifically for maritime environments. According to Northrop Grumman, the Triton’s powerful payload and endurance would provide its operator with the ability to “detect and analyze threats that were previously undetectable”.

The MQ-4C Triton Drone offers real-time intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities across extensive oceanic and coastal areas. It serves as a crucial asset for continuous maritime surveillance, undertaking search and rescue operations, and working in conjunction with the Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft.

*^{Two Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton unmanned aerial vehicles are seen on the tarmac at a Northrop Grumman test facility in Palmdale, Calif., May 22, 2013. (Image Credit: U.S. Navy/Northrop Grumman)}*

Earlier this year in February, Northrop Grumman demonstrated a flight test connecting airborne platforms with naval assets. During the test, the company used its “MQ-4C Triton Flying Test Bed equipped with the airborne gateway and shared fifth-generation sensor data to ground-based simulators that represented an F-35, an E-2D Advanced Hawkeye, U.S. Navy Aegis class destroyers and carrier strike groups.”

The MQ-4C Triton drone has a wingspan of 130.9 feet which is longer than that of the Boeing 737-900 aircraft. Its wings are designed to “withstand 40% stronger winds than the maximum gust load the aircraft is expected to experience in the real world”. The UAV’s missions can cover the area of all the Earth’s oceans 61 times a year.

Key Features of MQ-4C UAV

Endurance: 30 hours
Maximum speed: 357 mph (575 km/h, 320 know)
Range: 9,400 mi (15,200 km, 8,200 nmi)
Service ceiling: 17,000 meters (56,000 ft)
Length: 14.5 meters (47.7 feet)
Wingspan: 39.9 meters (130.11 feet)
Height: 4.6 meters (15.5 feet)
Empty weight: 6,781 kg (14,945 lb)
Gross weight: 14,630 kg (32,250 lb)