Protector drone support for UK to be provided by General Atomics
NewsJune 10, 2025
SAN DIEGO, California. The U.K. Ministry of Defence signed a support and sustainment contract with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) for logistics and maintenance of the Royal Air Force’s Protector RG Mk1 uncrewed aerial system (UAS), the company announced in a statement.
The agreement, known as the U.K. Protector Availability and Support Solution (UK PASS), will cover support for the air vehicle, ground control stations, and training systems, the statement reads. The Protector is based on GA-ASI’s MQ-9B SkyGuardian platform.
The contract is part of GA-ASI’s SkyGuardian Global Support Solutions (SGSS), a shared logistics model that consolidates resources such as labor, materials, and inventory across the company’s MQ-9B customer base, the company says.
According to the statement, the pooled support structure is intended to reduce sustainment costs by leveraging a global spares inventory and standardized maintenance practices among multiple international customers.
The MQ-9B family, which includes the SkyGuardian and SeaGuardian variants, has been acquired by the U.K., Canada, Poland, Japan, Taiwan, India, and U.S. forces, the company says.
