How a new, mobile package keeps Reaper drones ready to fight in Europe

MIROSŁAWIEC AIR BASE, Poland — On an unseasonably chilly, overcast and rainy day in late August in Poland, an electric-powered aircraft tractor towed an MQ-9A Reaper drone out of a hangar.

U.S. airmen and officials stood ready to perform and observe the demonstration of a novel, mobile satellite launch and recovery package for the American drone, opening up a host of new land-based sites from which the Reaper could operation in inclement weather.

The proof of concept — which ultimately succeeded and involved U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa, Air Combat Command, and the 435th Contingency Response Group assigned to Ramstein Air Base in Germany — took place at the Polish Air Force’s 12th Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Base outside of Mirosławiec.

Should an MQ-9 need to land there, a handful of maintainers qualified to service Reapers would need only to hop on a commercial flight with the clothes on their back, as all the necessary gear will already be in place.

The base is now “open for business” and ready to welcome any MQ-9A that needs to land there for basic maintenance, said Air Force Maj. Philip “Flip” West, the project lead for the satellite launch and recovery package, or SLR-P, for U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa.

West, a former Reaper pilot, envisioned the package as including the absolute minimum equipment maintainers would need to service an MQ-9A on any base in the world, contained in two conex boxes. The SLR-P includes the Portable Aircraft Control Station developed by MQ-9 manufacturer General Atomics, a starter cart, an electric towbarless aircraft tractor to transport the aircraft into a hangar, and refueling capabilities.

U.S. Air Force Maj. Philip “Flip” West envisioned the SLR-P as including the absolute minimum equipment maintainers would need to service an MQ-9A on any base in the world. (Vivienne Machi/Staff)

The event last month sought to demonstrate that a handful of maintainers could turn on the aircraft and hand control over to drone operators with the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, using only the equipment contained in the SLR-P, after which the Reaper would then take off and perform a routine sortie.

A thunderstorm had settled over Eastern Europe during the Aug. 30 proof of concept, grounding the aircraft until the following day. Nonetheless, the SLR-P operated as intended, with maintainers using the Portable Aircraft Control Station to get the MQ-9 up and running before handing over control to operators in Pennsylvania, West said.

This wasn’t the only “first” to take place on the Polish base for that Reaper; its landing at the 12th UAV Base prior to the proof of concept was the first weather diversion for the drone to a previously unrecorded runway in Europe. Now, that MQ-9 has mapped the entire runway, allowed any U.S. Air Force Reaper to access the file for easy landing in Mirosławiec.

“This was a huge deal for us,” West said. “Instead of canceling, we diverted the aircraft to the alternate airfield and proved that it can be done [in the] real world, not in a training environment.”

The MQ-9 is a critical asset for U.S. troops in Europe. (Vivienne Machi/Staff)

U.S. Air Forces in Europe and Air Forces Africa unilaterally acquired the Portable Aircraft Control Station in February, a move that caused consternation at Air Combat Command, a representative told Defense News at Mirosławiec, speaking on the condition of anonymity because the individual was not authorized to speak to the media on behalf of the military.

For West, the need to move quickly to develop the SLR-P — and thus directly procure Portable Aircraft Control Stations — was justified. “The events of last year were the driving factor behind the need for us to move faster than the rest of the MQ-9 community,” he said, referring to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that began in February 2022.

“When I acquired our own PACS, we were the first air component to own and control our own equipment, which means we can do with it what we want and how we want to do it,” West said. “We maintained our relationship with ACC by following the exact same regulations and maintenance rules that they follow, and we are open with its maintenance so ACC can still observe what we are doing. But overall, it is USAFE-AFAFRICA-owned and -controlled.”

The MQ-9 is a critical asset for U.S. troops in Europe. Starting in 2021, the Defense Department began operating more Reapers on the continent as it deployed fewer personnel . The Russian invasion last year placed a renewed emphasis on the aircraft’s intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.

The drone type currently operates out of two sites in Europe: Larissa Air Base in Greece and 71st Air Base at the Campia Turzii airfield in Romania.

The Reaper regularly patrols NATO’s eastern front and performs maritime surveillance in the Black and Baltic seas. In March, two Russian Su-27 fighter jets intercepted an MQ-9 over the Black Sea , striking a propeller and causing operators to down the aircraft in the waters below.

The Pentagon released footage from an MQ-9 Reaper drone it says shows the moment a Russian fighter jet collided with it.

As demand grows for its services, U.S. Air Forces in Europe wants to stand up “designated alternate” bases where Reapers land if inclement weather prevents them from returning to home base, or to refuel the drones closer to the front line. That’s where the SLR-P comes in, said West.

“Our northern launch location experiences adverse weather on average 52% of the time during the winter months, based on historical weather data from the last 10 years,” he told Defense News.

While the launch site might not experience poor weather every winter, unpredictability has already led to the cancellation of sorties when the MQ-9 can’t return to its home base. However, the SLR-P allows Reapers to operate out of alternate airfields “in the event we foresee adverse weather that is inbound to the airfield,” West explained.

For now, he said, the SLR-P is equipped for maintainers to only perform what’s known as “code 1″ maintenance, such as refueling; anything more complex, such as a flat tire or an engine failure, would require transporting the aircraft to its home base.

To date, Poland is the only partner to have formally agreed to host an SLR-P system. For now, the two conex boxes used in the demonstration will remain on the base until the system is needed.

Hosting the proof of concept at the 12th UAV Base underscored “the Polish commitment to not only Polish sovereignty, but also to fulfilling its obligation as a key member of the NATO alliance,” said Polish Air Force Col. Marcin Szubiński, the base’s commander.

For the past five years, the Mirosławiec base has been at “the forefront” of implementing cutting-edge intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance technologies that focus on interoperability with NATO allies, Szubiński told Defense News.

West hopes to eventually set up similar “designated alternate” bases in the Arctic Circle, the Baltics, the Mediterranean Sea and Africa. Conversations are ongoing with NATO allies and partners who might become future hosts, he said, emphasizing cost savings from using an SLR-P. West declined to identify those potential hosts.

“With this version, it cost a little more than $400,000; whereas a single, one-way flight on a [military jet] could cost around [$500‚000] to $550,000,” he said.

The U.S. Air Force wants to stand up bases where MQ-9 Reapers land no matter the weather, and can refuel closer to the front line. (Vivienne Machi/Staff)

Putting the ‘A’ in ‘ACE’

According to the Air Combat Command representative present at the proof of concept, it can take 90-120 days to move an MQ-9 force package that includes personnel, equipment and other required support for a launch operation. It can require up to eight aircraft — compared to the SLR-P, which can fit in one C-17 transport plane — and up to two dozen maintainers.

The representative described U.S. Air Forces in Europe as “ahead of the power curve” in its efforts to implement the service’s Agile Combat Employment doctrine. ACE, which Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. CQ Brown kicked off in 2022, calls for the the development of “ multi-capable Airmen ” qualified to perform a wider swath of duties “to minimize equipment and personnel footprints to increase dispersal capabilities and complicate adversary targeting.”

“With ACE, we’re going to have to get used to the idea of sending out a smaller group of people … with a limited amount of equipment,” the representative told Defense News.

Indeed, the SLR-P technology demonstrated in Poland, with its slim footprint of personnel and equipment, is “putting the ‘A’ in ‘ACE,’ ” West said.

The maintainers who demonstrated the SLR-P proof of concept at Mirosławiec were not originally trained to handle MQ-9s. The 435th Contingency Response Group traditionally serviced heavy-lift aircraft at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. But since March 2022, its airmen have undergone a series of training and qualifications to provide ground support on the front line to F-16 and F-15E jets as well as MQ-9s, said the group’s commander, Air Force Col. R. Patrick Rayner.

Capt. Quin’Shay Perkins, right, an MQ-9 pilot, trains on a simulator at Einsiedlerhof Air Station, Germany, on July 25, 2023. (Capt. Jered Trujillo/U.S. Air Force)

The team also qualified in so-called hot pit refueling for fighter jets, when an aircraft lands and receives fuel without turning off the engines, Rayner said at the base. The group is now set to qualify in providing ground support to the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter by October.

“Multi-capable airmen: That’s what we’ve been doing for 25 years,” Rayner said of his unit.

The SLR-P proof of concept was the first time this squadron of maintainers serviced an MQ-9 on their own, an airman with the 435th told Defense News.

The self-sustaining group is naturally suited to provide its own equipment, said the airman, who spoke on background per an agreement with the U.S. Air Force. Now, with the new package, any maintainer can “get out the door a lot quicker” and use equipment already on site, the service member added.

Following the proof of concept, the 435th provided feedback to West and his team about what else an SLR-P could include, the airman said.

And given extra room in the conex boxes, future versions could help maintainers perform more complex services, West said.

The anticipated proliferation of “designated alternate” MQ-9 sites is poised to increase partnerships across NATO and encourage more buy-in from allies in Europe and beyond, stakeholders said at the 12th UAV Base.

In the Indo-Pacific region, for example, SLR-P could be set up at various allied bases, allowing Reapers to island hop to avoid sortie cancellations from weather issues.

In the European region, Poland previously committed to spending 3% of its gross domestic product on defense beginning in 2023 — up from 2.2% in 2021 — and doubling its troop numbers up to 300,000 personnel.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Army established the U.S. Army Garrison Poland this past March, intended to host about 10,000 permanent U.S. troops in 11 sites around Poznań and other Polish cities, as well as 4,000 rotational forces and 2,500 surge or exercise personnel.

Poland has also committed to buying new Reapers in the near term. In October 2022, the Polish Defence Ministry signed a $70.6 million deal to lease an undisclosed number of MQ-9A Reapers from General Atomics.

(Vivienne Machi/Staff)

Additionally, the ministry unveiled plans to buy MQ-9B Reapers, which would make the Polish Armed Forces the first military along NATO’s eastern front to buy the medium-altitude, long-endurance drone. Before the deal was signed, a ministry official told Defense News the drone acquisition is related to “the difficult situation on Poland’s eastern border” with Ukraine, which is still fighting off a Russian invasion.

Polish forces are using the leased MQ-9As “in surveillance areas of interest, including along Poland’s eastern border” in order to “facilitate the collection of surveillance data within the field of imagery intelligence … and signals intelligence,” a spokesperson for the ministry told Defense News last month.

Meanwhile, Poland is advancing talks with General Atomics. “Currently, there are ongoing negotiations with the supplier of this weaponry. In line with the Technical Modernization Plan [for the Polish Armed Forces], the MQ-9B Reaper acquisition is planned for the year 2024,” the spokesperson said.

Once that acquisition is complete, the 12th UAV Base will be ready to support the new Reapers with lessons learned from hosting the U.S. Air Force’s 52nd Expeditionary Operations Group Detachment 2 and its MQ-9 fleet for the past several years.

The base became familiar with some support functions such as fueling, fire protection and pre-accident planning, said Szubiński, the base’s commander.

“Learning to operate the aircraft and, more importantly, integrating it into combined arms of the Polish military requires some time,” he explained. “But we’ve certainly taken the first and, by some accounts, the most critical steps.”

Jaroslaw Adamowski in Warsaw, Poland, contributed to this report.

Vivienne Machi is a reporter based in Stuttgart, Germany, contributing to Defense News' European coverage. She previously reported for National Defense Magazine, Defense Daily, Via Satellite, Foreign Policy and the Dayton Daily News. She was named the Defence Media Awards' best young defense journalist in 2020.

波兰米罗斯瓦维茨空军基地——在波兰八月下旬一个反常的寒冷、阴雨天，一辆电动飞机牵引车将一架 MQ-9A 死神无人机从机库中拖了出来。

美国空军人员和官员随时准备进行和观看美国无人机新型移动卫星发射和回收装置的演示，这将为“死神”无人机在恶劣天气下运行开辟许多新的陆基发射场。

概念验证——最终获得成功，并涉及美国驻欧洲空军、驻非洲空军、空战司令部以及驻德国拉姆施泰因空军基地的第 435 应急反应大队——在波兰空军位于米罗斯瓦维茨郊外的第 12 无人机基地进行。

如果一架 MQ-9 无人机需要降落在那里，少数有资格维护“死神”无人机的维护人员只需要穿着身上的衣服搭乘商业航班即可，因为所有必要的装备都已经准备就绪。

美国驻欧洲空军和驻非洲空军卫星发射和回收方案（SLR-P）项目负责人、空军少校菲利普·“菲利普”·韦斯特表示，该基地现在“已投入使用”，随时准备迎接任何需要降落在那里进行基本维护的MQ-9A无人机。

曾任“死神”无人机飞行员的韦斯特设想，这套设备包应包含维护人员在全球任何基地维护MQ-9A无人机所需的绝对最低限度设备，全部装在两个集装箱内。SLR-P系统包括MQ-9制造商通用原子公司开发的便携式飞机控制站、启动车、用于将飞机运送到机库的电动无杆飞机牵引车以及加油设备。

美国空军少校菲利普·“弗利普”·韦斯特设想，SLR-P 系统应包含维护人员在世界任何基地维护 MQ-9A 无人机所需的绝对最低限度设备。（薇薇安·马奇/工作人员）

上个月的这次活动旨在证明，少数维护人员可以仅使用 SLR-P 中包含的设备启动飞机并将控制权移交给宾夕法尼亚州空中国民警卫队的无人机操作员，之后“死神”无人机即可起飞并执行例行飞行任务。

8月30日概念验证期间，东欧上空遭遇雷暴，飞机被迫停飞至次日。尽管如此，SLR-P仍按计划运行，维护人员使用便携式飞机控制站启动MQ-9并使其正常运行，之后将控制权移交给宾夕法尼亚州的操作人员，韦斯特说道。

这架“死神”无人机在波兰基地创造的“第一”并非个例；在概念验证之前，它曾在第12无人机基地降落，这是该无人机首次因天气原因改道降落在欧洲一条此前未被记录的跑道上。如今，MQ-9无人机已绘制出整条跑道的地图，使得任何美国空军的“死神”无人机都能访问该地图，从而轻松降落在米罗斯瓦维茨机场。

“这对我们来说意义重大，”韦斯特说。“我们没有取消航班，而是将飞机改道飞往备用机场，这证明了在现实世界中，而不是在训练环境中，这是可以做到的。”

MQ-9无人机是驻欧美军的关键装备。（薇薇安·马奇/摄）

据米罗斯瓦维茨的一位代表向《防务新闻》透露，美国驻欧洲空军和驻非洲空军于2月份单方面采购了便携式飞机控制站，此举引起了空战司令部的震惊。该代表要求匿名，因为他没有被授权代表军方接受媒体采访。

对韦斯特而言，迅速开发SLR-P（从而直接采购便携式飞机控制站）的必要性是合理的。“去年的事件促使我们必须比其他MQ-9用户更快地行动，”他说道，指的是俄罗斯于2022年2月开始的对乌克兰的全面入侵。

“当我们购置了自己的PACS系统时，我们是第一个拥有并控制自己设备的空军部队，这意味着我们可以随心所欲地使用它，”韦斯特说。“我们通过遵循与空军作战司令部（ACC）完全相同的规章制度和维护规则来维持与他们的合作关系，并且我们对维护工作保持公开透明，以便ACC可以监督我们的工作。但总的来说，这套系统由美国空军驻欧-非洲司令部（USAFE-AFAFRICA）拥有和控制。”

MQ-9无人机是驻欧美军的关键装备。自2021年起，随着美军在欧洲部署人员减​​少，美国国防部开始在欧洲大陆部署更多“死神”无人机。去年俄罗斯入侵欧洲大陆，使得该型无人机的情报、监视和侦察能力更加凸显。

目前，该型无人机在欧洲的两个地点运行：希腊的拉里萨空军基地和罗马尼亚坎皮亚图尔齐机场的第 71 空军基地。

“死神”无人机定期在北约东部战线巡逻，并在黑海和波罗的海执行海上监视任务。今年3月，两架俄罗斯苏-27战斗机在黑海上空拦截了一架MQ-9无人机，击中其螺旋桨，导致操作人员将其击落。

五角大楼公布了一段MQ-9“死神”无人机拍摄的视频，称视频显示了俄罗斯战斗机与其相撞的瞬间。

随着对无人机服务的需求不断增长，驻欧美军希望设立“指定备用”基地，以便在恶劣天气导致“死神”无人机无法返回基地时降落，或为无人机在更靠近前线的地方加油。韦斯特表示，SLR-P无人机正是在这种情况下发挥作用的。

“根据过去 10 年的历史气象数据，我们北部的发射地点在冬季平均有 52% 的时间会遭遇恶劣天气，”他告诉《防务新闻》。

虽然发射场并非每年冬季都会遭遇恶劣天气，但不可预测的天气状况已经导致MQ-9无人机无法返回基地，从而取消了部分飞行任务。然而，韦斯特解释说，SLR-P系统允许“死神”无人机在备用机场执行任务，“以防我们预见到机场将面临恶劣天气”。

他表示，目前 SLR-P 仅配备了维护人员执行所谓的“代码 1”维护，例如加油；任何更复杂的情况，例如爆胎或发动机故障，都需要将飞机运回其基地。

迄今为止，波兰是唯一正式同意承建SLR-P系统的合作伙伴。目前，演示中使用的两个集装箱将暂时留在基地，直到需要使用该系统为止。

波兰空军第 12 无人机基地指挥官马尔钦·舒宾斯基上校表示，在该基地举办概念验证活动凸显了“波兰不仅致力于维护波兰主权，而且致力于履行其作为北约联盟重要成员的义务”。

舒宾斯基告诉《防务新闻》，过去五年里，米罗斯瓦维茨基地一直处于实施尖端情报、监视和侦察技术的“前沿”，这些技术侧重于与北约盟国的互操作性。

韦斯特希望最终能在北极圈、波罗的海沿岸、地中海和非洲建立类似的“指定备用”基地。他表示，目前正在与可能成为未来基地所在地的北约盟国和伙伴国进行磋商，并强调使用SLR-P（海上远程侦察巡逻机）可以节省成本。韦斯特拒绝透露这些潜在基地所在地的具体名称。

他说：“这个版本的成本略高于 40 万美元；而乘坐一架（军用喷气式飞机）的单程飞行可能要花费 50 万到 55 万美元左右。”

美国空军希望建立一些基地，使MQ-9“死神”无人机无论天气如何都能降落，并能在更靠近前线的地方进行空中加油。（薇薇安·马奇/工作人员）

把“A”放进“ACE”里

据出席概念验证的空战司令部代表称，部署包括人员、装备和其他发射行动所需支援在内的MQ-9部队包可能需要90至120天。这可能需要多达8架飞机——相比之下，SLR-P只需一架C-17运输机即可装载——以及多达24名维护人员。

这位代表称，驻欧美军在落实空军“敏捷作战部署”（ACE）理论方面“走在了前列”。ACE由空军参谋长CQ·布朗将军于2022年启动，旨在培养“多能空军人员”，使其能够执行更广泛的任务，“以最大限度地减少装备和人员占用，提高分散部署能力，并增加敌方打击目标的难度”。

“有了ACE计划，我们就必须习惯派出一小群人……携带有限的装备，”这位代表告诉《防务新闻》。

韦斯特说，事实上，在波兰展示的 SLR-P 技术，由于其人员和设备的占用空间很小，正在“将‘ACE’中的‘A’融入其中”。

在米罗斯瓦维茨进行SLR-P概念验证演示的维护人员最初并没有接受过MQ-9无人机的操作训练。第435应急响应大队传统上负责在德国拉姆施泰因空军基地维护重型运输机。但该大队指挥官、空军上校R·帕特里克·雷纳表示，自2022年3月以来，该大队的空军人员接受了一系列培训和资格认证，以便为F-16和F-15E战斗机以及MQ-9无人机提供前线地面支援。

2023年7月25日，MQ-9飞行员昆谢·珀金斯上尉（右）在德国艾因西德尔霍夫空军基地使用模拟器进行训练。（杰瑞德·特鲁希略上尉/美国空军）

雷纳在基地表示，该团队还通过了战斗机“热加油”的资格认证，即飞机着陆后无需关闭发动机即可接受加油。该团队目前计划在10月份之前获得为F-35联合攻击战斗机提供地面支援的资格认证。

“多面手空军人员：这就是我们25年来一直在做的事情，”雷纳在谈到他的部队时说道。

一名来自第 435 维护中队的空军人员告诉《防务新闻》，SLR-P 概念验证是该中队首次独立维护 MQ-9。

这位空军人员表示，这个自给自足的小组自然有能力提供自己的装备。根据与美国空军的协议，他要求匿名发言。他还补充说，现在有了新的方案，任何维护人员都可以“更快地出动”，并使用现场已有的设备。

这位空军人员说，在概念验证之后，第 435 中队向韦斯特和他的团队提供了反馈，说明 SLR-P 还可以包含哪些内容。

韦斯特表示，如果集装箱内有更大的空间，未来的版本可以帮助维护人员执行更复杂的服务。

利益相关者在第 12 无人机基地表示，预计“指定备用”MQ-9 基地的激增将加强北约内部的合作，并鼓励欧洲及其他地区的盟友更多地参与其中。

例如，在印度洋-太平洋地区，可以在各个盟军基地部署 SLR-P，使“死神”战机能够进行岛屿跳跃式部署，从而避免因天气问题而取消出击。

在欧洲地区，波兰此前承诺从 2023 年开始将国内生产总值的 3% 用于国防开支（高于 2021 年的 2.2%），并将军队人数增加一倍，达到 30 万人。

与此同时，美国陆军于今年 3 月设立了美国陆军波兰驻军，计划在波兹南和其他波兰城市的 11 个地点驻扎约 10,000 名常驻美军，以及 4,000 名轮换部队和 2,500 名增援或演习人员。

波兰也已承诺在近期内购买新的“死神”无人机。2022年10月，波兰国防部签署了一项价值7060万美元的协议，从通用原子公司租赁数量不详的MQ-9A“死神”无人机。

（薇薇安·马奇/工作人员）

此外，波兰国防部还公布了采购MQ-9B“死神”无人机的计划，这将使波兰武装部队成为北约东线首个采购这款中空长航时无人机的国家。在协议签署前，一位国防部官员告诉《防务新闻》，采购无人机与波兰东部与乌克兰接壤的“严峻局势”有关，乌克兰目前仍在抵御俄罗斯的入侵。

波兰国防部一位发言人上个月告诉《防务新闻》，波兰军队正在“感兴趣的监视区域，包括波兰东部边境沿线”，使用租借的MQ-9A无人机，以便“促进图像情报……和信号情报领域的监视数据收集”。

与此同时，波兰正与通用原子公司推进谈判。“目前，我们正在与该武器供应商进行谈判。根据波兰武装部队技术现代化计划，MQ-9B“死神”无人机的采购计划于2024年完成。”发言人表示。

一旦收购完成，第 12 无人机基地将做好准备，为新的“死神”无人机提供支持，并吸取过去几年接待美国空军第 52 远征作战大队第 2 分遣队及其 MQ-9 机队的经验教训。

基地指挥官舒宾斯基表示，该基地熟悉了一些后勤保障职能，例如加油、消防和事故前规划。

他解释说：“学习操作这种飞机，更重要的是，将其融入波兰军队的联合作战体系，都需要一些时间。但我们无疑已经迈出了第一步，而且在某些方面来说，也是最关键的一步。”

波兰华沙的雅罗斯瓦夫·阿达莫夫斯基 (Jaroslaw Adamowski) 对本报告做出了贡献。

薇薇安·马奇是驻德国斯图加特的一名记者，主要负责《防务新闻》的欧洲报道。她此前曾为《国家防务杂志》、《防务日报》、《卫星通讯》、《外交政策》和《代顿每日新闻》撰稿。2020年，她荣获防务媒体奖最佳青年防务记者称号。