MQ-1C Gray Eagle
OEM: General Atomics Aeronautical Systems
First Produced: 2009
Status: Active
Role: Army medium-altitude long-endurance armed UAS
Primary Operator: U.S. Army
OEM Website: ga-asi.com
The MQ-1C Gray Eagle is the U.S. Army's medium-altitude long-endurance uncrewed aerial system, derived from the Predator lineage but optimized for the Army's division-level ISR, communications-relay, and armed-overwatch missions. It carries four AGM-114 Hellfire missiles or GBU-44 Viper Strike munitions and operates from austere runways with a 25-hour endurance.
The current Extended Range variant adds a deep-belly fuel tank, a heavy-fuel engine, and an upgraded sensor ball, extending endurance beyond 40 hours and enabling persistent surveillance at the operational depth an Army corps commander needs. General Atomics continues to offer a Gray Eagle 25M upgrade that modernizes avionics, adds open-architecture mission systems, and hardens the aircraft against contested electromagnetic environments.
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