Article Posted on : - Jun 15, 2012

MQ-4C Triton. Photo: Northrop Grumman Corp.

PALMDALE, CALIFORNIA (BNS): Northrop has unveiled the first US Navy MQ-4C Triton Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Unmanned Aircraft System (BAMS UAS) in a ceremony at its manufacturing facility in Palmdale, California.

The BAMS UAS unveiled on Thursday, is a versatile maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance system to support a variety of missions while operating independently or in direct collaboration with fleet assets.

When operational, BAMS will play a key role in providing commanders with a persistent, reliable picture of surface threats, covering vast areas of Open Ocean and littoral regions as the unmanned segment of the Navy's Maritime Patrol Reconnaissance Force.

Designated the MQ-4C, the US Navy released the aircraft name as "Triton," keeping with the tradition of naming surveillance aircraft after Greek sea gods. Triton is the Greek messenger of the sea.

Currently, BAMS-D (demonstrator), a Block 10 RQ-4 equipped with maritime sensors, is being used by the US Navy's Fifth Fleet.

BAMS-D provides a glimpse of the full persistent capabilities that the Triton's 360-degree Multi-Function Active Sensor (MFAS) radar will bring to the fleet.