{"id":26067,"date":"2018-02-16T19:26:20","date_gmt":"2018-02-16T19:26:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/uncategorized\/2018\/02\/16\/air-force-announces-official-retirement-date-for-iconic-mq-1-predator\/"},"modified":"2026-08-07T20:55:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T20:55:17","slug":"air-force-announces-official-retirement-date-for-iconic-mq-1-predator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/defensenews\/air\/2018\/02\/16\/air-force-announces-official-retirement-date-for-iconic-mq-1-predator\/","title":{"rendered":"Air Force announces official retirement date for iconic MQ-1 Predator drone"},"content":{"rendered":"
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MQ-1 Predator pilot Capt. Chris describes how teams of pilots and sensor operators in both the Middle East and the United States work together to fly remotely-piloted aircraft. Produced by Lars Schwetje & Stephen Losey<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n

The Air Force will officially retire<\/a> its iconic, groundbreaking \u2014 and controversial \u2015 MQ-1 Predator on March 9, officials at Creech Air Force Base said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a Wednesday release<\/a>, Creech said that the Air Force will shift to entirely using MQ-9 Reapers<\/a> for combat missions after the Predator\u2019s sunset<\/a>. The Air Force also flies unarmed RQ-4 Global Hawks for reconnaissance missions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First Lt. Annabel Monroe, a spokeswoman for Air Combat Command, said that the Air Force is still figuring out what it will do with its retiring Predator fleet. Some could be transferred to Air Force museums, and the Air Force is exploring the possibility of transferring some to the Navy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the Air Force won\u2019t sell them to private organizations, Monroe said, and does not expect to sell or give them to allied nations through the Excess Defense Article Program for Security Cooperation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And while the active duty Air Force and Air National Guard will stop flying the MQ-1 after March 9, contractor flights in the Middle East will continue through December, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Predator was a landmark in the development of the military\u2019s use of remotely-piloted aircraft. The Air Force first deployed the unarmed reconnaissance version of the Predator, the RQ-1, in Albania in July 1995, and also set up Air Combat Command\u2019s first Predator unit that month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Predator had a checkered level of success in the early days. Creech said several RQ-1s were shot down early on, and others crashed due to infrastructure problems. But air crews kept tweaking the design to improve its flight capabilities, such as by adding helicopter missile pylons and switching to a more reliable turbo engine. It was also tweaked to do something it wasn\u2019t originally intended to do: Carry and fire ordnance such as Hellfire missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unarmed Predators were used to scout Afghanistan beginning a week after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. And on Oct. 7, 2001, the day strikes on Afghanistan began, the first armed mission with a Predator<\/a> was carried out \u2014 this one by the CIA, unsuccessfully targeting Taliban leader Mullah Mohammed Omar \u2015 and it ushered in a new era of warfare. That Predator, tail number 3034, now hangs in the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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UNSPECIFIED, UNSPECIFIED – JANUARY 07: A U.S. Air Force pilot (L), and a censor operator (R), prepare to launch a MQ-1B Predator unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), from a ground control station at a secret air base in the Persian Gulf region on January 7, 2016. The U.S. military and coalition forces use the base, located in an undisclosed location, to launch drone airstrikes against ISIL in Iraq and Syria, as well as transport cargo and troops supporting Operation Inherent Resolve. The Predators at the base are operated and maintained by the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron, currently attached to the 386th Air Expeditionary Wing. (Photo by John Moore\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In 2003, Creech said, the Air Force developed the ability to allow pilots to fly RPAs from across the globe. This \u201cremote-split operation\u201d tactic beamed signals to RPAs once they took off, allowing RPA pilots to conduct missions from stateside bases such as Creech.<\/p>\n\n\n\t