Monitoring Desk
ISLAMABAD/AVALON: Boeing Co’s MQ-28 Ghost Bat fighter-like drone developed in Australia could fit the United States (US) Air Force’s requirements for a collaborative combat aircraft (CCA),
“We are developing the MQ-28 to fit into a set of requirements fit into that category of CCA, and hopefully there is the intersection there,” Space and Security Chief Executive Ted Colbert, Boeing Defence adviser, said on the sidelines of the Australia International Airshow.
MQ-28 jet
Boeing was developing the MQ-28 in Australia alongside the Royal Australian Air Force in the country’s first homegrown combat aircraft to be manufactured in over 50 years. Colbert said there was “a lot of interest” in the MQ-28 from around the globe.
It is designed to group with crewed fighter jets, which he said could include the Lockheed Martin Corp F-35, to be a “loyal wingman” and a low-cost force multiplier.
The MQ-28, which made its first flight in 2021, was on public display at the air show. The drone is 38 feet long, has a 2,000-nautical mile range, and can be outfitted with various payloads. The plane can carry weapons and help protect crewed fighter jets.
