General Atomics Guardian

Maritime Patrol Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)

United States | 2006

"The United States Customs and Border Protection Agency operates several specially-modified MQ-9 Reapers as the Guardian."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 05/21/2019 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Image courtesy of the United States Department of Defense imagery database.

The General Atomics "Guardian" is a modified maritime patrol variant of the successful line of General Atomics MQ-9 "Reaper" Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) family and operated under the banner of the United States Customs and Border Protection (US CBP). The CBP operates at least two in this navalized role, outfitted with the SeaVue marine search radar system. Additionally, they sport a special over-water electro-optical infrared sensor for the role. The MQ-9 Reaper (formerly known as "Predator B") forms a long-endurance, high-altitude, armed patrol role for the United States Air Force (USAF) and is in service with the forces of Australia, Britain, Netherlands and Italy as well with over 100 units built.

These aircraft retain much of the same form and function of their Reaper counterparts including their straight mainplanes, Vee-shaped vertical tail fins and bulbous nose section. However, a special extension is noted along the belly, mounting a pod, and winglets are added to the mainplane tips. The aircraft is still powered by a conventional engine system (Honeywell turboprop) that drives a three-bladed propeller unit at the rear of the fuselage in a "pusher" configuration. The integrated, retractable wheeled undercarriage allows the aircraft to take-off and land from any prepared runway.

The Guardians are known to be based out of Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (Florida) and Naval Air Station Corpus Christi (Texas).

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Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the General Atomics Guardian Maritime Patrol Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).

1 x Honeywell TPE331-10 turboprop engine developing 900 horsepower.
Propulsion

298 mph
480 kph | 259 kts
Max Speed

49,869 ft
15,200 m | 9 miles
Service Ceiling

1,150 miles
1,850 km | 999 nm
Operational Range

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the General Atomics Guardian Maritime Patrol Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).

0
(UNMANNED)
Crew

36.1 ft
11.00 m
O/A Length

65.6 ft
(20.00 m)
O/A Width

11.8 ft
(3.60 m)
O/A Height

4,905 lb
(2,225 kg)
Empty Weight

10,472 lb
(4,750 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the General Atomics Guardian Maritime Patrol Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) .

None. Special mission equipment centered around surveillance, intelligence-gathering and reconnaissance.

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the General Atomics Guardian family line.

Guardian - Base Series Name

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the General Atomics Guardian. Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 2 Units
Contractor(s): General Atomics Aeronautical Systems - USA

[ United States ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 300mph

Lo: 150mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (298mph).

Graph Average of 225 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

2

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

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Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

♦

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Image courtesy of the United States Department of Defense imagery database.

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

RECONNAISSANCE

UNMANNED

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft

Going Further...
The General Atomics Guardian Maritime Patrol Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) appears in the following collections:

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