×
Aircraft / Aviation Vehicles & Artillery Infantry Arms Warships & Submarines Military Pay Chart (2023) Military Ranks
Advertisements
HOME
AIRCRAFT / AVIATION
MODERN AIR FORCES
COUNTRIES
MANUFACTURERS
COMPARE
BY CONFLICT
BY TYPE
BY DECADE
MODERN AIRCRAFT
X-PLANE
DRONE TECHNOLOGY
FUTURE FLIGHT
Aviation / Aerospace

Boeing Phantom Works MQ-28A (Ghost Bat)


Loyal Wingman / Attritable UAS [ 2026 ]



Formerly known as Air Power Teaming System, the Boeing Phantom Works has been officially designated the MQ-28A Ghost Bat.



Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 03/01/2023 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

GO TO SPECIFICATIONS [+]
Advertisements
For decades, warplanners have envisioned skies where drones would fly side-by-side with manned warplanes, augmenting existing capabilities of latter aircraft types. Boeing, with assistance from the Australian government and Australian local industry, has gone on to unveil the "Airpower Teaming System" (ATS), a modular Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) intended to provide a budget-concious unmanned solution to American and Australian allies. The air vehicle is to work in conjunction with existing, current-generation Boeing products like the "Super Hornet" multirole naval fighter and the newer P-8 "Poseidon" maritime patroller.

The drone's development is being headed by Boeing's own Phantom Works International division and was debuted at the Australian Avalon Air Show in February of 2019. A technology demonstrator is planned next under the "Loyal Wingman Advanced Development Program" (LWADP) and the end-goal is to produce an air vehicle capable of completely autonomous direction under Artificial Intelligence (AI) operating with manned aircraft or independently as needed.

The product is made possible through funds provided, in part, by the Australian government (nearly $30 million USD over the course of four years) with direct support from the Royal Australia Air Force (RAAF) with an eye towards local Australian production of the completed, production-quality air system (this to involve names like BAe Systems Australia). Foreign involvement in the product also eases availability and procurement for interested foreign parties as is the case with other foreign Boeing projects like the "Wedgetail" program (now flying with South Korea and Turkey). Additionally, the program helps to evolve a growing and maturing local Australian defense industry to meet future requirements as well as self-sustainment goals.

The finalized ATS design will carry an existing lightweight turbofan engine currently of unknown make, model, and output. It is estimated with a range equal to 2,300 miles (2,000 nautical miles), able to operate over land and water with equal effectiveness. The current appearance of the aircraft (largely engineered in Australia) showcases an extended nose section, side-mounted intakes aspirating the sole engine installation, shoulder-mounted wing mainplanes, and a "V-style" tail unit (no horizontal tailplanes are featured). The mainplanes have an unbroken, sweptback leading edge and compound trailing edge that is both swept forward (inboard panel) and sweptback (outboard panel). "Chining" is used about the edges of the fuselage to promote inherent "stealthiness" and a traditional tricycle undercarriage (retractable) is featured for ground-running. As currently drawn up, the air vehicle has an overall length of 38 feet though other dimensions remain under wraps.

Internally, the mission payload of the drone will encompass various Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance (ISR) fits through a modular systems approach - making for quick exchanges of equipment as needed per sortie. Beyond this, the ATS will have an Electronic Warfare (EW) capability to further enhance its over-battlefield value.

If the ATS program comes to fruition, it will usher in a new era of unmanned warfare, the next logical step in achieving a battlefield that involves AI and drone aircraft fighting side-by-side with their human overlords. Eventually, the battlefield may very well become dominated by unmanned vehicles in whole - leaving humans completely out of the equation.©MilitaryFactory.com
Note: The above text is EXCLUSIVE to the site www.MilitaryFactory.com. It is the product of many hours of research and work made possible with the help of contributors, veterans, insiders, and topic specialists. If you happen upon this text anywhere else on the internet or in print, please let us know at MilitaryFactory AT gmail DOT com so that we may take appropriate action against the offender / offending site and continue to protect this original work.

February 2020 - The first major fuselage component of the ATS has been completed by Boeing Australia.

April 2020 Power-on status of the ATS has been achieved, marking a major milestone in the unmanned aircraft program between the United States and Australia.

May 2020 - The ATS is set to be unveiled by Boeing on May 5th, 2020.

September 2020 - The ATS has run its engines for the first time.

October 2020 - Beoing Australia has successfully completed the first taxi test of its Airpower Teaming System.

March 2020 - The ATS drone has flown for the first time on March 1st, 2021.

November 2021 - A second, flyable Loyal Wingman aircraft has begun its flight testing phase.

March 2022 - The Air Power Teaming System has officially been designated the MQ-28A "Ghost Bat".

May 2022 - The RAAF has committed an additional $454 million USD to the Loyal Wingman Program and intends to purchase an additional seven of the vehicles. A third airframe is now being readied for flight testing to happen sometime during 2022.

March 2023 - Australia has increased its procurement stock of MQ-28 UASs to 10 airframes.

Advertisements

Specifications



Service Year
2026

Origin
Australia national flag graphic
Australia

Status
IN-DEVELOPMENT
Program in Progress.
Crew
0
UNMANNED
Production
5
UNITS


Boeing Company / Boeing Australia - USA / Phantom Works International; BAe Systems - Australia
(View other Aviaton-Related Manufacturers)
National flag of Australia National flag of the United States Australia (ordered); United States (probable)
(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)
Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance (ISR), Scout
Surveil ground targets / target areas to assess environmental threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.
X-Plane (Developmental, Prototype, Technology Demonstrator)
Aircraft developed for the role of prototyping, technology demonstration, or research / data collection.
Unmanned Capability
Aircraft inherently designed (or later developed) with an unmanned capability to cover a variety of over-battlefield roles.


RADAR-CAPABLE
Houses, or can house (through specialized variants), radar equipment for searching, tracking, and engagement of enemy elements.
WING SWEEPBACK
Mainplanes, or leading edges, features swept-back lines for enhanced high-speed performance and handling.
HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE
Can accelerate to higher speeds than average aircraft of its time.
HIGH-ALTITUDE PERFORMANCE
Can reach and operate at higher altitudes than average aircraft of its time.
EXTENDED RANGE PERFORMANCE
Capability to travel considerable distances through onboard fuel stores.
SUPER PERFORMANCE
Design covers the three all-important performance categories of speed, altitude, and range.
MARITIME OPERATION
Ability to operate over ocean in addition to surviving the special rigors of the maritime environment.
UNMANNED OPERATION
Design features ability to fly sans pilot, actions controlled onboard through programming and / or ground-based operator.
AUTONOMOUS OPERATION
Design features autonomous flight operations made possible through onboard artificial intelligence or pre-programming.
CAMERA EQUIPMENT
Payload supports photographic equipment providing still and / or real-time image / video results.


Length
38.0 ft
(11.58 m)
(Showcased structural values pertain to the Boeing Phantom Works ATS production variant)
monoplane / shoulder-mounted / swept-back
Monoplane
Design utilizes a single primary wing mainplane; this represent the most popular mainplane arrangement.
Shoulder-Mounted
Mainplanes are mounted at the upper section of the fuselage, generally at the imaginary line intersecting the pilot's shoulders.
Swept-Back
The planform features wing sweep back along the leading edges of the mainplane, promoting higher operating speeds.
(Structural descriptors pertain to the Boeing Phantom Works ATS production variant)
Installed: 1 x Turbofan engine of unknown make, model, and thrust output.
Range
2,302 mi
(3,705 km | 6,862 nm)
(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the Boeing Phantom Works ATS production variant. Performance specifications showcased above are subject to environmental factors as well as aircraft configuration. Estimates are made when Real Data not available. Compare this aircraft entry against any other in our database or View aircraft by powerplant type)
None. Mission arrangement consists of equipment centered on the Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance (ISR) role utilizing a modular approach.


Supported Types




(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)
MQ-28A "Ghost Bat" - Official designation unveiled in March of 2022.
ATS ("Airpower Teaming System") - Original Base Program Name.


Military lapel ribbon for Operation Allied Force
Military lapel ribbon for the Arab-Israeli War
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Britain
Military lapel ribbon for the Battle of Midway
Military lapel ribbon for the Berlin Airlift
Military lapel ribbon for the Chaco War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cold War
Military lapel ribbon for the Cuban Missile Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for pioneering aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the Falklands War
Military lapel ribbon for the French-Indochina War
Military lapel ribbon for the Golden Age of Flight
Military lapel ribbon for the 1991 Gulf War
Military lapel ribbon for the Indo-Pak Wars
Military lapel ribbon for the Iran-Iraq War
Military lapel ribbon for the Korean War
Military lapel ribbon for the 1982 Lebanon War
Military lapel ribbon for the Malayan Emergency
Military lapel ribbon representing modern aircraft
Military lapel ribbon for the attack on Pearl Harbor
Military lapel ribbon for the Six Day War
Military lapel ribbon for the Soviet-Afghan War
Military lapel ribbon for the Spanish Civil War
Military lapel ribbon for the Suez Crisis
Military lapel ribbon for the Ukranian-Russian War
Military lapel ribbon for the Vietnam War
Military lapel ribbon for Warsaw Pact of the Cold War-era
Military lapel ribbon for the WASP (WW2)
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 1
Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2
Military lapel ribbon for the Yom Kippur War
Military lapel ribbon for experimental x-plane aircraft


Ribbon graphics not necessarily indicative of actual historical campaign ribbons. Ribbons are clickable to their respective aerial campaigns / operations / aviation periods.

Images Gallery



1 / 2
Image of the Boeing Phantom Works MQ-28A (Ghost Bat)
Image from Boeing press release / marketing materials.
2 / 2
Image of the Boeing Phantom Works MQ-28A (Ghost Bat)
Image from Boeing press release / marketing materials.


Advertisements




Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies


2023 Military Pay Chart Military Ranks DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com.

Part of a network of sites that includes GlobalFirepower, a data-driven property used in ranking the top military powers of the world, WDMMA.org (World Directory of Modern Military Aircraft), WDMMW.org (World Directory of Modern Military Warships), SR71blackbird.org, detailing the history of the world's most iconic spyplane, and MilitaryRibbons.info, cataloguing all American military medals and ribbons.


©2023 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2023 (20yrs)