USS Ronald Reagan Controls MQ-25A Stingray Drone Tanker 2,100 Miles Away via Satellite

The US Navy established a satellite command link between USS Ronald Reagan, underway in the Pacific, and a Boeing MQ-25A Stingray test aircraft more than 2,100 miles away in Mascoutah, Illinois. During preliminary sea trials, the carrier's Unmanned Air Warfare Center used an MD-5C ground control station and a proliferated low-Earth-orbit network to demonstrate beyond-line-of-sight control. The trial did not involve carrier launch, recovery or an aerial refuelling sortie, but tested a required element of the unmanned carrier aviation control system. The Navy now projects MQ-25A initial operational capability for February 2029.