General Atomic's New Predator Drone Moves to UK; First Predator Drone to Fly Above Civilian Airspace?

General Atomic's predator drones have always served a great deal in military operations, being the first unmanned aircraft to bring useful intel in combat as well as attack targets with its built-in weaponry. But the new model of predator drones that will be delivered to UK will serve a new purpose: to surveil and operate in British civilian airspace.

According to the Washington post, UK bought 16 predator drones from General Atomic for a total of $1 Billion, with the option to buy 10 more. The sale includes the 16 aircraft and materials needed to operate the predator drones like targeting equipment and ground control stations; customer support for spare parts and training also comes with the purchase.

A Stronger, Faster Predator Drone Could Soon Prowl Europe’s Airspace https://t.co/RQd8CvezPW #avgeek #aviation

— Aviation Mobile Apps (@aviation_apps) December 12, 2016

The new model of the predator drone, the Certifiable Predator B, is the latest line of Predator Drones by General Atomic, as per the Wired. The Certifiable Predator B is based on the MQ-9 Reaper and meets requirements of the STANAG-4671 established by NATO in 2007 and domestic airworthiness certification standards to fly above civilian airspace. The predator drone is slated to serve the UK Royal Air Force in 2018.

The new predator drone will support UK's armed and coalition forces with peacekeeping and counter-terrorism operations; and because it can use civilian and commercial airports, it can carry on various mission types, like border patrol and disaster relief. The 16 Certifiable Predator B will be added to UK's fleet of unmanned drones, which includes UK's local-made drone, the Watchkeeper.

The Certifiable Predator B has a larger wingspan and fuel capacity compared to the MQ-9 Reaper. The new predator drone can also fly for up to 40 hours, much longer than the MQ-9 Reaper that has only a maximum flight time of 27 hours. The Certifiable Predator B also has nine storage spaces, while the MQ-9 Reaper has only seven.

General Atomic also upgraded the Certifiable Predator B drone's ability to work on icy environment, lightning, and bird strikes to meet standards. The predator drone also has an automatic take-off and landing feature, as well as a detect-and-avoid anti-collision systems that is still under development.