The Australian Department of Defence officially announced its plan on June 26, 2018 to purchase the Northrop Grumman Corporation-built MQ-4C Triton aircraft system, further cementing the company’s commitment to a longstanding U.S. ally.
An unmanned aircraft system with an autonomous capability built for maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, MQ-4C Triton is the first Northrop Grumman-built aircraft system Australia has purchased. The system will be operated by the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF).
«Northrop Grumman looks forward to bringing the MQ-4C Triton unmanned system with its autonomous capability to Australia», said Ian Irving, chief executive officer, Northrop Grumman Australia. «Working with the Royal Australian Air Force and the U.S. Navy, we are confident that we can provide the best capability to fulfill Australia’s maritime mission».
Triton can fly at altitudes of 55,000 feet/16,764 m for 24 hours at a time and is equipped with sensors that provide high-resolution imagery and near real-time video. Pilots and sensor operators fly the Triton from ground stations, which can command flights all over the world.
«Triton provides unprecedented endurance and 360-degree coverage through its unique sensor suite», said Doug Shaffer, vice president of MQ-4C Triton programs, Northrop Grumman. «Australia has one of the largest sea zones in the world over which it has rights to use marine resources, also known as an Economic Exclusion Zone. As a flexible platform, MQ-4C Triton can serve in missions as varied as maritime domain awareness, target acquisition, fisheries protection, oil field monitoring and humanitarian relief».
MQ-4C Triton builds on Northrop Grumman’s legacy of success in autonomous systems. The U.S. Navy recently acquired two operational MQ-4C Triton aircraft and is under contract for six more. These aircraft will go to Guam later this year and provide the Navy with an unprecedented common operating picture of the maritime environment. MQ-4C Triton can detect, classify and track ships over large swaths of ocean and littorals. The U.S. Navy program of record is for 68 aircraft.
Northrop Grumman has been building its presence Down Under for many years. The global aerospace and technology company will be the anchor tenant of an AUD $50 million Electronic Sustainment Centre of Excellence, to be established at the Badgerys Creek Airport precinct in western Sydney. The new centre will support advanced electronics such as communications and electronic warfare equipment and targeting pods. Northrop Grumman will bring together highly skilled technicians, engineers and other professionals whose work will be further supported by the company’s high-end technology and software expertise.
Through a Global Supply Chain Deed signed with the Australian Department of Defence in 2011 and renewed in 2017, Northrop Grumman is identifying opportunities for Australian industry to be part of the company’s global supply chain. For example, Northrop Grumman’s largest Australian F-35 Lightning II joint strike fighter supplier, Quickstep Technologies, demonstrated that its new production facility is equipped and qualified to manufacture and deliver quality composite parts for the F-35’s centre fuselage. At a new facility opened in Bankstown, Sydney, in 2012, Quickstep is expected to manufacture over 36,000 parts for the F-35.
Northrop Grumman also works with CEA Technologies, one of Australia’s leading military electronic systems and radar companies, and Electro Optics Systems, which develops products incorporating advanced electro-optic technologies for the global aerospace market.
«Australia and the United States are celebrating 100 Years of Mateship this year, marking an alliance that goes back to the trenches of WWI. Northrop Grumman is proud to partner with such a loyal friend and provide this unprecedented capability to the RAAF», said Irving. «We consider Triton and its autonomous technology to be the future of the next centennial of aviation, and we are honored to be part of this century-long partnership».
Key Features
- Provides persistent maritime ISR at a mission radius of 2,000 NM/2,302 miles/3,704 km; 24 hours/7 days per week with 80% Effective Time On Station (ETOS)
- Land-based air vehicle and sensor command and control
- Afloat Level II payload sensor data via line-of-sight
- Dual redundant flight controls and surfaces
- 51,000-hour airframe life
- Due Regard Radar for safe separation
- Anti/de-ice, bird strike, and lightning protection
- Communications bandwidth management
- Commercial off-the-shelf open architecture mission control system
- Net-ready interoperability solution
Payload (360-degree Field of Regard)
Multi-Function Active Sensor Active Electronically Steered Array (MFAS AESA) radar:
- 2D AESA;
- Maritime and air-to-ground modes;
- Long-range detection and classification of targets.
MTS-B multi-spectral targeting system:
- Electro-optical/infrared;
- Auto-target tracking;
- High resolution at multiple field-of-views;
- Full motion video.
AN/ZLQ-1 Electronic Support Measures:
- All digital;
- Specific Emitter Identification.
Automatic Identification System:
- Provides information received from VHF broadcasts on maritime vessel movements.
Specifications
| Wingspan | 130.9 feet/39.9 m |
| Length | 47.6 feet/14.5 m |
| Height | 15.4 feet/4.6 m |
| Gross Take-Off Weight (GTOW) | 32,250 lbs/14,628 kg |
| Maximum Internal Payload | 3,200 lbs/1,452 kg |
| Maximum External Payload | 2,400 lbs/1,089 kg |
| Self-Deploy | 8,200 NM/9,436 miles/15,186 km |
| Maximum Altitude | 56,500 feet/17,220 m |
| Maximum Velocity, TAS (True Air Speed) | 331 knots/381 mph/613 km/h |
| Maximum Endurance | 24 hours |