GA-ASI conducts first flight of
Avenger Extended Range

   General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc., announced                                       Photograph courtesy of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.         Get the Brand New
Nov. 10 the successful first flight of its new Avenger® Ex-                                                                                                          Aerotech News App
tended Range aircraft, an extended range version of its multi-    The RPA provides an optimal balance of long loiter intel-
mission, jet-powered Predator® C Avenger which has accu-          ligence, surveillance and reconnaissance and precision-strike                                                 AEROTECH NEWS
mulated more than 13,000 flight hours to date.                    capability, supporting a wide array of sensors and weapons                                                        AND REVIEW
                                                                  payloads to perform ISR and ground support missions. Ike
   The flight occurred Oct. 27 at the company’s Gray Butte        the legacy Avenger, Avenger ER features avionics based                                          Latest News • Veteran resources • Military Discounts
Flight Operations Facility in Palmdale, Calif.                    upon the combat-proven Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper®, has a
                                                                  44-foot long fuselage, 3,000-pound payload bay and is ca-                                                search for Aerotech News
   GA-ASI is a leading manufacturer of remotely piloted air-      pable of flying at more than 400 KTAS. Avenger ER, along
craft systems, radars, and electro-optical and related mission    with its predecessor, is designed to carry payloads such as
systems solutions.                                                the all-weather GA-ASI Lynx® Multi-mode Radar, the MS-
                                                                  177 Electro-optical/Infrared sensor and the 2,000-pound Joint
   “The first flight of the Avenger ER is a significant achieve-  Direct Attack Munition.
ment in the evolution of Predator C’s proven performance and
multi-mission capability,” said Linden Blue, CEO, GA-ASI.            GA-ASI developed Avenger on internal research and de-
“The increased endurance and high payload capacity will de-       velopment funds with the intent of making an RPA that has a
liver tremendous capability to our customers, who need per-       quick-response, armed reconnaissance capability. First flown
sistent situational awareness and strike mission affordability.”  in April 2009, the aircraft’s fuselage was extended by four
                                                                  feet in 2012 to accommodate larger payloads and fuel. Aveng-
   With an increased wingspan of 76 feet and 2,200 pounds         er received an FAA-issued Experimental Certificate in 2016,
of additional fuel, Avenger ER extends the legacy Avenger’s       enabling it to operate in the U.S. National Airspace System.
already impressive endurance from 15 hours to 20 hours.

November 18, 2016 • Volume 30, Issue 18                           Serving the aerospace industry since 1986                                                       Use your smartphone to connect to
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