U.S. Air Force Deploys MQ-9 Reaper Drone to Test Operations in Contested Battlespace.

The U.S. Air Force deployed an MQ-9 Reaper from the 174th Attack Wing to Exercise Sentry South 26-2 in Gulfport, Mississippi, to validate operations inside a simulated contested battlespace. The drill tested the drone’s ability to sustain intelligence collection and support joint fires under integrated air defense, electronic warfare, and communications disruption, a shift from permissive counterinsurgency missions.

The U.S. Air Force sent an MQ-9 Reaper from the 174th Attack Wing to Gulfport, Mississippi, for Exercise Sentry South 26-2, placing the remotely piloted aircraft inside a simulated peer-level combat environment designed to stress its survivability and mission endurance. Unlike the permissive airspace that defined much of the past two decades, the drill exposed the MQ-9 to integrated air defense systems, electronic warfare effects, and communications disruption intended to replicate anti-access and area-denial threats. Airmen were tasked with maintaining persistent intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance coverage while enabling joint maritime surveillance and strike coordination, validating the platform’s ability to contribute to high-end conflict scenarios alongside other joint force assets.
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U.S. Air Force airmen assigned to the 174th Attack Wing at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base are readying a U.S. Air Force MQ-9 Reaper for departure from the Combat Readiness Training Center during Exercise Sentry South 26-2 in Gulfport, Mississippi, on February 23, 2026. (Picture source: U.S. Department of War)

Conducted at the Combat Readiness Training Center, Sentry South 26-2 focused on major combat operations and joint maritime opportunities under degraded operational conditions. The exercise applied joint and combined warfighting doctrine against layered, robust enemy threat systems in a controlled yet operationally demanding environment. For the Air Force’s remotely piloted aircraft enterprise, this scenario reflects a strategic pivot toward peer-conflict readiness, where survivability, network resilience, and integration into distributed kill chains determine operational value.

The MQ-9 Reaper is a medium-altitude, long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft developed by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, and precision strike missions. Designed as a more powerful successor to the MQ-1 Predator, the platform incorporates greater payload capacity, improved propulsion, and expanded weapons integration to meet higher-intensity operational requirements. The aircraft features a wingspan of 20 m (66 ft), endurance exceeding 27 hours depending on configuration, and an operational ceiling above 12,000 m (ft). Powered by a Honeywell TPE331 turboprop engine, the Reaper can carry approximately 1,700 kg (3,750 lb) of external stores across multiple hardpoints while maintaining a persistent on-station presence.

Its standard weapons suite includes AGM-114 Hellfire air-to-ground missiles, GBU-12 laser-guided bombs, and GBU-38 Joint Direct Attack Munitions. Combined with advanced electro-optical and infrared sensor systems, the aircraft provides full-motion video, laser designation, and targeting-quality intelligence in real time. These characteristics allow the MQ-9 to function not only as a strike platform but as a critical sensor node within joint command-and-control architectures.

The current U.S. Air Force MQ-9 fleet, including aircraft assigned to Air National Guard units such as the 174th Attack Wing, operates in the Block 5 configuration. This variant incorporates increased electrical power generation, enhanced secure communications, and expanded capacity for weapons and payload growth compared to earlier models. The additional onboard power supports more advanced sensors and future upgrades, while communications improvements enhance resilience in electronically contested environments. These modifications are central to sustaining the aircraft’s relevance as the operational focus shifts from permissive theaters to contested domains.

The 174th Attack Wing, based at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse, New York, transitioned from manned fighter operations to remotely piloted aircraft in the late 2000s. As one of the first Air National Guard units to adopt the MQ-9 mission, the wing has become a key contributor to the Air Force’s remotely piloted aircraft enterprise. It supports overseas contingency operations, global ISR taskings, and homeland defense missions while providing trained aircrews, intelligence specialists, and maintenance personnel integrated into joint force structures. Its participation in Sentry South 26-2 highlights the Air National Guard’s operational depth and direct involvement in peer-level combat preparedness.

During the exercise, the MQ-9 operated in scenarios simulating radar-guided surface-to-air missile systems, GPS degradation, and communications jamming. Such threats challenge the aircraft’s reliance on satellite communications and distributed ground control elements. Training objectives focused on maintaining command-and-control integrity under electronic attack, preserving ISR data flows to joint force commanders, and supporting maritime and air strike assets in a denied or degraded spectrum environment.

Operationally, the event demonstrated the MQ-9’s expanding contribution to maritime domain awareness and distributed joint kill chains. In a Pacific or European contingency, a Reaper operating from dispersed or expeditionary airfields could monitor critical sea lanes and chokepoints, detect hostile surface vessels, and relay targeting data to U.S. Navy destroyers, Marine Corps coastal defense batteries, or Air Force strike aircraft. Its long endurance allows persistent coverage of maritime approaches, reducing reliance on high-demand crewed ISR platforms and strengthening deterrence through sustained presence.

Strategically, Sentry South 26-2 comes as the Pentagon reassesses the survivability of legacy remotely piloted aircraft within anti-access and area-denial environments. While next-generation collaborative combat aircraft and more survivable unmanned systems are under development, the MQ-9 remains numerically significant and operationally mature within the force structure. Enhancing its ability to function under degraded conditions extends the return on investment across the existing fleet and preserves a critical layer of ISR and precision-strike capacity.

By integrating the MQ-9 into a simulated peer fight that emphasized electromagnetic contestation and maritime maneuver, the Air Force tested whether its most established unmanned platform can continue to deliver operational advantage when communications are disrupted and integrated air defenses threaten access. The results of exercises such as Sentry South will directly inform modernization priorities, communications resilience upgrades, and doctrinal refinement as the United States prepares its unmanned force for high-intensity conflict.

Written by Alain Servaes – Chief Editor, Army Recognition Group
Alain Servaes is a former infantry non-commissioned officer and the founder of Army Recognition. With over 20 years in defense journalism, he provides expert analysis on military equipment, NATO operations, and the global defense industry.