Northrop Grumman Systems Corp has been awarded a contract for two additional low-rate initial production (LRIP) Lot 5 MQ-4C Triton high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (HALE UAVs) for the US Navy.
The $248.225m modification to a previously awarded fixed-price incentive (firm-target) contract was awarded to the company on June 22 by US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR).
It is being financed by Fiscal Year 2022 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds. Work is expected to be completed in February 2027. The US Navy plans to acquire 65 Tritons ultimately, through the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) programme.
On February 1, 2022, the first production MQ-4C configured to Integrated Functional Capability 4 (IFC-4) standard – BuNo 169171 (air vehicle B8) – was delivered to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland. This gives the MQ-4C a multi-intelligence capability and is expected to become operational next year.
