After refueling a fighter F / A-18F Super Hornet and an early warning aircraft E-2D Hawkeye, the Boeing MQ-25 Stingray in-flight refueling drone successfully transferred fuel to an F-35C Lightning II stealth fighter, the manufacturer said on Tuesday (14).
This was the third refueling mission for the Boeing-owned MQ-25TM T1 test drone in just three months. The T1 will be used to conduct a deck handling demonstration aboard a US Navy aircraft carrier in the coming months to help advance the progress of carrier integration.
“Each test flight with another Type/Model/Series of aircraft brings us one step closer to rapidly delivering a fully mission capable MQ-25 to the fleet”, said Capt. Chad Reed, manager of the Navy's unmanned airborne aviation program. "The Stingray's unparalleled resupply capability will enhance the Navy's power projection and provide operational flexibility for Carrier Strike Group commanders"
During a test flight on Monday (13), an F-35C pilot from the Navy's Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 (VX-23) Salty Dogs successfully conducted a wake turbulence test behind the T1 to ensure performance and stability before making with the T1 refueling basket receiving fuel.
“This flight was yet another physical demonstration of the maturity and stability of the MQ-25 aircraft design,” said Dave Bujold, Boeing's MQ-25 program director. “Thanks to this latest mission in our accelerated test program, we are confident that the MQ-25 aircraft we are now building will meet the Navy's top requirement – safely supply fuel to the carrier's air wing.”
See more: US aircraft carrier conducts operations with F-35C fighters in the South China Sea
How it started (first # MQ25 T1 test program flight, Sept. 2019) ➡ How it's going (latest T1 test flight, refueling a @USNavy F-35C)
Next up: T1 will head to a carrier for a deck handling demonstration! pic.twitter.com/KuHBg6NAU2
ADVERTISING - Boeing Defense (@BoeingDefense) September 14, 2021
The T1's flight test program began in September 2019 with the first flight of the unmanned aircraft. Over the next two years, the test program completed more than 120 hours of flight time – collecting data on everything from aircraft performance to propulsion dynamics and structural loads and vibration tests for strength and stability.
The MQ-25 is benefiting from two years of initial flight test data, which has been integrated back into its digital models to strengthen the digital thread that connects aircraft design to production for testing operations and lift. Boeing is currently manufacturing the first two MQ-25 test aircraft.
