The USS George H.W. Bush has become the first aircraft carrier to house the world’s inaugural Unmanned Air Warfare Center (UAWC). This facility serves as a control hub where Air Vehicle Pilots will remotely manage the Navy’s future unmanned aerial systems, beginning with the MQ-25 Stingray, an unmanned refueling tanker.
The UAWC is equipped with the necessary hardware and software to operate these drones, primarily through the Unmanned Carrier Aviation Mission Control System (UMCS).
The UMCS, crucial to the operation of the MQ-25, is centered around the MD-5E Ground Control Station (GCS). This system, developed by integrating Lockheed Martin’s Multi-Domain Combat System software, is installed aboard the carrier in specialized racks and cockpits.
The establishment of the UAWC was a complex, multi-year project that required collaboration between various Navy program offices and industry partners, ensuring that the new unmanned systems could be smoothly incorporated into the carrier’s existing infrastructure.
USS George H.W. Bush Becomes First Carrier to Host Unmanned Air Warfare Center, Paving the Way for MQ-25 Operations
Next year, the Navy plans to conduct the first at-sea tests of the UAWC’s networks, where pilots from Unmanned Multi-Role Squadron 10 will utilize the UMCS hardware aboard the USS George H.W. Bush to interact with a simulated MQ-25 aircraft.
The MQ-25 Stingray program represents a significant collaboration between the Navy and industry giants Boeing and Lockheed Martin, with Boeing developing the aircraft and Lockheed providing the essential control systems.
The deployment of the MQ-25 marks a major shift in naval aviation, as it is the first unmanned aircraft to serve operationally on an aircraft carrier. The MQ-25 fleet is intended to replace the F/A-18E/F Super Hornets in the mid-air refueling role, which will allow these fighter jets to focus on combat missions rather than refueling duties, thereby enhancing the Navy’s operational capabilities.
