mod kit gba

Mojave drone fires gun pods for first time

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems recently released details of a successful live-fire demonstration involving its Mojave unmanned aircraft system, the same type recently trialled onboard a British carrier.

Conducted on Apr. 13th, at Yuma Proving Ground, Arizona, the test validated the Mojave’s weaponisation capabilities and underscored its potential as a multi-mission tactical asset.

Partnering with Dillon Aero, GA-ASI equipped the Mojave with two DAP-6 Gun Pod Systems, each boasting a firing rate of 3,000 rounds per minute.

During the demonstration, the Mojave completed seven firing passes across two flights, successfully engaging and destroying static targets with an estimated expenditure of 10,000 rounds of ammunition.

“Seeing our Mojave perform this live-fire demo really emphasizes the versatility of the Mojave UAS and what it can do,” said GA-ASI President David R. Alexander.

“Mojave has the ability to act as a sensor, shooter, and sustainer while mitigating threat environments and vulnerabilities and safeguarding human lives.”

The Mojave’s unique selling point lies in its Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) capability. Unlike conventional UAS requiring extensive runways, the Mojave can operate from austere locations and unimproved landing zones. Notably, it successfully demonstrated carrier operations during a November 2023 collaboration with the Royal Navy.

This flexibility opens doors for deploying the Mojave in previously inaccessible theatres, significantly expanding its operational potential.

Large ‘Mojave’ drone flies from British aircraft carrier

In November last year, the largest uncrewed aircraft ever launched from a Royal Navy aircraft carrier paved the way for the next generation of UK naval air power.

Codenamed ‘Mojave’, the specially-modified aircraft – operated remotely by a ‘pilot’ at a computer terminal – took off from and safely landed back on board HMS Prince of Wales in a unique trial off the East Coast of the USA.

The drone can carry four Hellfire missiles.

No crewless machine its size – nine metres long, with a wingspan of 17 metres (six metres wider than an F-35B Lightning stealth fighter) and weighing more than 1½ tonnes fully loaded – has ever flown from an aircraft carrier outside the US Navy before.

“The Mojave trial is a European first – the first time that a Remotely Piloted Air System of this size has operated to and from an aircraft carrier outside of the United States,” said Rear Admiral James Parkin, Royal Navy Director Develop, whose team planned the trial.

“The success of this trial heralds a new dawn in how we conduct maritime aviation and is another exciting step in the evolution of the Royal Navy’s carrier strike group into a mixed crewed and uncrewed fighting force.”