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Aug 17, 2024

US Approves $738 Million Sale of MQ-9 Reapers to Italy

 


The US State Department has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to Italy of MQ-9 Block 5 Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and related equipment, the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on 15 August 2024.
The proposed sale, which is estimated to be worth USD 738 million (EUR 671.5 million), has been passed to the US Congress for final approval.
Italy has requested to buy six MQ-9 Block 5 UAVs; three MQ-9 mobile ground control stations (MGCS); 12 AN/DAS-4 Multi-spectral Target Systems; nine Lynx AN/APY-8 Block 20A synthetic aperture radars with a maritime wide area surveillance (MWAS) capability; and one embedded global positioning and inertial navigation (EGI) system.
Also included in the package are Reaper/Predator engines; Ruggedized Aircraft Maintenance Test Stations (RAMTS); various avionics and communication systems; spare and repair parts; and various aspects of programme, maintenance, logistics, technical, engineering and training support.
“The proposed sale will improve Italy’s capability to meet current and future threats by expanding and improving the Italian Air Force’s MQ-9 fleet and advancing US and NATO policy goals of security and interoperability,” the DSCA stated. “Italy already has MQ-9 Block 5 aircraft with strike capabilities in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing these articles into its armed forces.”
Italy received six MQ-9s from 2009, but one was shot down during operations in Libya in November 2019. The remaining original five Reapers are being upgraded to the Block 5 standard.
The principal contractor for the sale will be General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc out of its facilities in San Diego, California.

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