Boeing and the US Navy have carried out the first operational test flight of the MQ-25A Stingray uncrewed aircraft system (UAS) on 25 April 2026.
The two-hour flight was conducted at Boeing’s MidAmerica Airport facility in Mascoutah, Illinois. It involved Boeing and Navy Air Vehicle Pilots (AVPs) remotely operating the aircraft through the Unmanned Carrier Aviation Mission Control System MD-5, which incorporates Lockheed Martin’s MDCX technology.
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During this test, the AVPs completed a series of evaluations to confirm the aircraft’s basic flight controls, engine performance, and handling. They programmed flight routes and established waypoints before the aircraft’s onboard autonomous system assumed control of propulsion, guidance, and flight operations.
Throughout the test, the AVPs also monitored system status, with the capacity to intervene or revise the mission profile as required, Boeing stated.
Unmanned Carrier Aviation programme manager (PMA-268) Daniel Fucito said: “The successful first flight officially initiates the rigorous flight test programme, which will focus on expanding the aircraft’s performance envelope and verifying all mission systems.”
The MQ-25A is set to become the US Navy’s first operational carrier-based UAS, whose primary role is aerial refuelling.
Powered by a single AE 3007N engine, part of the Rolls-Royce AE engine series, Stingray is expected to increase the combat radius and operational flexibility of the Navy’s Carrier Air Wing.
Following the first successful flight, Boeing and the US Navy plan to continue test flights at the same facility to further assess the aircraft’s performance and systems integration.
Upon completion of these tests, the MQ-25A will relocate to Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland for preparations involving carrier operations.
Boeing Air Dominance vice president and general manager Dan Gillian said: “The MQ-25A is the most complex autonomous system ever developed for the carrier environment, and this historic achievement advances us closer to safely integrating the Stingray into the carrier air wing.”
