MALD to give MQ-9 Reaper EW capability

Raytheon and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems are working together to integrate the Miniature Air-Launched Decoy (MALD) onto the MQ-9 Reaper (Predator B) unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), it was announced on 13 February.

Ground verification of the work was completed in November 2012, Raytheon said, and the MALD/Reaper combination should be set for fielding later in 2013.

The MALD system is designed to mimic the radar and flight signature of a manned fighter or bomber, therefore confusing enemy air defence systems. It achieves this by rebroadcasting the signals it receives from hostile radar installations at varying power levels to replicate aircraft of differing sizes and roles.

In addition, its flight characteristics can be preprogrammed to better represent a particular manned type, and its single Hamilton Sundstrand TJ-150 turbojet powers it to a surge speed of Mach 0.9 or an endurance speed of about Mach 0.6.

The system weighs approximately 280 lb (127 kg) with a 40 lb payload, and has a range of 500 n miles (925 km). It is available in two variants: the baseline MALD and the jamming-capable MALD-J.