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Navy/USMC

The Navy’s New Drone Cruise Missile Target Reaches IOC

Tuesday, March 5th, 2019

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The Navy’s New Drone Cruise Missile Target Reaches IOC

A BQM-177A Sub-Sonic Aerial Target (SSAT) prepares for flight test in May 2017 from Point Mugu, Calif. (Photo: U.S. Navy)

The Navy’s new sub-sonic aerial target (SSAT), the BQM-177A, reached Initial Operational Capability on Feb. 27. Built by Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc. [KTOS], the system is a recoverable target, acting as a high performance unmanned aircraft to replicate cruise missile threats to the Navy. The BQM-177A will replace the legacy recoverable BQM-74E target with more capabilities. The new target can reach speeds over 0.9 Mach and skim the sea at an altitude as low as 10 feet. It carries…

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