The U.S. Navy recently signed an agreement with the Canadian Department of National Defense for the first international sale of the RQ-21A Blackjack Unmanned Air System (UAS).
The Blackjack program will be managed by the Navy and Marine Corps Small Tactical Unmanned Aircraft Systems Program Office (PMA-263) and will deliver one system to the Canadian Army in 2017.
“We are very pleased to have our Canadian allies and neighbors as our first Foreign Military Sales case and look forward to helping them grow their small tactical UAS capability and ensure maximum interoperability with our assets, if desired,” Col. Eldon Metzger, program manager for PMA-263, said.
The Blackjack system, built by Insitu, is comprised of five air vehicles, two ground control stations, and launch and recovery equipment that does not require a runway. The vehicle, which has a wingspan of 16 feet and measures eight feet long, has an open-architecture configuration and is designed to integrate multiple sensor payloads. The system has an endurance of approximately 10-12 hours.
The system is currently underway with the USS San Antonio (LPD 17) for its maiden shipboard deployment after successfully completing its first operational flight in July.