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Satcom, Laptop-Controlled MQ-9B Mission Completed in GA-ASI Demonstration

Nick Zazulia

Tuesday, February 26th, 2019

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Satcom, Laptop-Controlled MQ-9B Mission Completed in GA-ASI Demonstration

GA-ASI's XC2 ruggedized portable laptop. (GA-ASI)

The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) MQ-9B SkyGuardian completed a demonstration sortie without the use of an on-site ground control station (GCS) this month, relying on only satcom and the company's expeditionary command-and-control (XC2) portable laptop. One of the MQ-9B's selling points is the ability to cut down on footprint by launching without an on-site GCS, which is what GA-ASI demonstrated on Feb. 15. The company used its XC2 portable laptop to complete preflight checks. XC2 is part of GA-ASI's…

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