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Warrior UAV likely to replace Predator

The Air Force will likely transition during the next few years from its MQ-1B Predator unmanned aerial vehicle to the Army’s MQ-1C Sky Warrior, the Air Force’s top uniformed acquisition officer said Wednesday.

Lt. Gen. Donald J. Hoffman, military deputy to the office of the assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, told the Senate Armed Services Committee’s airland subcommittee that the Air Force is buying two Sky Warriors and will put them through the test and evaluation process.

“We will probably transition from the Predator ... to the [Warrior] once it’s proven,” Hoffman said.

He did not give a timeline for the testing or the transition.

Both the Predator and Warrior are manufactured by General Atomics and are similar aircraft, but the Warrior is larger, flies higher and can carry a heavier payload. Most importantly, the Warrior can carry four laser-guided AGM-114 Hellfire missiles, compared with two for the Predator.

The Warrior also has automatic takeoff and landing capability, which the Predator lacks.

The Army plans to buy 132 Warriors in the first batch. The first operational Warriors will be delivered to the 101st Airborne Division at Fort Campbell, Ky., in August 2009.