IAI RQ-2 Pioneer

Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) [ 1986 ]

The RQ-2 Pioneer truly lived up to her namesake in the realm of UAV technology, seeing action beginning with the Persian Gulf War of 1991.

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 06/22/2022 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site.

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The RQ-2 Pioneer series of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) was one of the first operational UAVs utilized by the United States military. It initially served aboard surface naval warships as an artillery tool before eventually being devoted wholly to aerial observation of the battlefield overland. Though not as flashy or powerful as the new generation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), the Pioneer was truly just that, a pioneering vehicle that laid down the foundation for an entire UAV family of aircraft that presently serve with the United States military.

Design of the RQ-2 produced an aircraft-like aerodynamic fuselage with equipment mounted at front and the single Sachs 2-stroke, 2-cylinder 26 horsepower gasoline piston engine at rear. Wings were mounted high and to the rear of the fuselage and were of a straight edge variety and supported underneath by struts. Twin booms extended aft and were joined by a horizontal plane with twin vertical fins rounding out the empennage. The undercarriage was statically deployed.©MilitaryFactory.com

The Pioneer developed from a joint agreement between Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) and AAI Corporation. The system was designed form the outset to perform a variety of unarmed battlefield surveillance and reconnaissance roles and could be launched from land (via catapult or runway) or at sea (via catapult or rocket assist) returning to vessels by way of net or arrestor hook. Flying times varied depending on the overall payload weight but several hours could be achieved. The strength in the Pioneer system lay in its ability to relay real-time information through analog video by way of a line-of-sight (LOS) data link. The RQ-2 Pioneer system was put into action in the Persian Gulf War of 1991, Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq under the operational US branches of the Army, Navy and Marines. It also saw service with forces sponsored by Israel and Singapore.©MilitaryFactory.com

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Specifications

Service Year

1986

Origin

Israel

Status

ACTIVE
In Active Service.

Crew

2

Production

20
UNITS

AAI Corporation - USA / Pioneer UAVs, Incorporated / Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) - Israel

(View other Aviaton-Related Manufacturers)

Israel; Singapore; United States

(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)

INTELLIGENCE-SURVEILLANCE-RECONNAISSANCE
Surveil ground targets / target areas to assess environmental threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.

UNMANNED
Aircraft inherently designed (or later developed) with an unmanned capability to cover a variety of over-battlefield roles.

Length

13.1 ft
(4.00 m)

Width/Span

17.1 ft
(5.20 m)

Height

3.3 ft
(1.00 m)

MTOW

452 lb
(205 kg)

(Showcased structural values pertain to the base IAI RQ-2 Pioneer production variant)

Installed: 1 x Sachs 2-stroke, 2-cylinder gasoline piston engine developing 26 horsepower.

Max Speed

124 mph
(200 kph | 108 kts)

Ceiling

15,092 ft
(4,600 m | 3 mi)

Range

115 mi
(185 km | 100 nm)

♦ MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

(Showcased performance specifications pertain to the base IAI RQ-2 Pioneer 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.

Supported Types

(Not all ordnance types may be represented in the showcase above)

RQ-2 - Base Series Designation

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