US Army's first ME-11B spy jet prototype nears completion for future high-altitude reconnaissance.

The U.S. Army confirmed that its first ME-11B High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) surveillance jet prototype is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, as the planned fleet falls from 14 to six aircraft. Sierra Nevada Corporation is converting Bombardier Global 6500 business jets into high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft equipped with Raytheon's ASARS-2B radar and signals intelligence systems to detect ground movements, map military activity, and intercept electromagnetic emissions over extended distances. 

The ME-11B, previously known as HADES, will conduct high-altitude reconnaissance, using radar and signals intelligence to detect troop and vehicle movements, map military installations, and locate electronic emissions. (Picture source: SNC)

On October 16, 2026, Andrew Evans, the director of the U.S. Army’s Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) Task Force, confirmed to Aviation Week that the first ME-11B High Accuracy Detection and Exploitation System (HADES) intelligence aircraft is expected to be completed before December 31, 2026, as the planned fleet has been reduced from 14 to six jets under the 2025 Army Transformation Initiative. The reduction of eight aircraft, equivalent to 57.1%, comes as the U.S. Army replaces more than 40 RC-12X Guardrail, MC-12S EMARSS, and EO-5C ARL-M reconnaissance aircraft with a smaller number of higher-altitude intelligence jets. Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) is now converting Bombardier Global 6500 business jets into ME-11Bs equipped with Raytheon's ASARS-2B radar and signals intelligence systems under a 12-year contract with a $991.3 million ceiling.

A second aircraft is expected in 2027, while a third, more advanced configuration will undergo modifications over the following two years. The U.S. Army has not established when all six aircraft will enter service and intends to retain its contractor-operated reconnaissance fleet during the transition. The HADES acquisition began with the selection of the Global 6500 in January 2024, followed by SNC's $93.5 million initial integration contract in August 2024. Its evaluated proposal of $93 million was $40 million below the $133 million offer submitted by L3Harris Technologies, Leidos, and MAG Aerospace, while the U.S. Army rated SNC's technical proposal outstanding and its competitors' unacceptable. L3Harris challenged the award on September 16, 2024, but the Government Accountability Office (GAO) rejected the protest on December 23, allowing work to resume on January 6, 2025.

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Bombardier delivered the first unmodified business jet at Wichita, Kansas, on November 25, 2024, leaving more than two years for conversion, sensor integration, and testing before the expected prototype completion. The $991.3 million contract ceiling covers integration and support rather than establishing a unit purchase price. Compared with earlier planning for as many as 16 aircraft, the current six-aircraft objective represents a 62.5% reduction, while congressional funding delays could further affect deliveries. Expected delivery around January 2027, followed by an operational demonstration and potential assignment to intelligence collection missions, the ME-11B uses the Bombardier Global 6500, a twin-engine Canadian business jet with a maximum range of 12,223 km, a maximum speed of Mach 0.9, a long-range cruise speed of Mach 0.85, and a maximum operating altitude of 15,545 m.

At high altitude, Mach 0.85 corresponds to roughly 900 km/h, producing theoretical transit times of 3.3 hours over 3,000 km and 5.6 hours over 5,000 km, excluding climb, winds, and routing. On a hypothetical 12-hour mission involving a 6,000-km round trip, travel alone would consume 6.7 hours, leaving 5.3 hours for surveillance and other flight requirements. At 10,000 m, the simplified horizon to a surface point is 508 km, increasing to 633 km at 15,545 m, a 24.6% increase in distance, although this does not establish radar detection range. These characteristics matter for operations across the Pacific, where long transits reduce time available for intelligence collection. The military configuration's actual mission radius, fuel consumption, sensor-equipped weight, and endurance remain unconfirmed, meaning the Global 6500's civilian performance figures cannot establish the ME-11B's operational surveillance duration. 

The aircraft's principal radar will be Raytheon's ASARS-2B, derived from the ASARS family developed for the Lockheed U-2, with the earlier ASARS-2A entering delivery in 2001 and the ASARS-2B undergoing U-2 flight testing in 2019. Its active electronically scanned array (AESA) electronically redirects radar beams, while synthetic aperture radar (SAR) generates high-resolution ground imagery through clouds, smoke, and darkness. Ground moving target indication (GMTI) detects vehicle movements, allowing their positions to be correlated with roads, storage areas, and infrastructure to identify changes in ground activity. Unlike the GMTI, which depends on target movement and Doppler characteristics, the SAR can image stationary equipment and terrain. However, the ASARS-2B development encountered processor, antenna, and receiver-exciter integration problems, prompting an additional $10 million funding transfer in February 2024 from the canceled RQ-4 Ground Segment Modernization Program.

Its detection range against specific vehicle types, ground-image resolution, simultaneous SAR/GMTI capacity, and geographic coverage per hour aboard the ME-11B remain unconfirmed, preventing a quantitative comparison with legacy reconnaissance aircraft. The U.S. Army assigned the ME-11B designation to the HADES aircraft in March 2025, with "M" indicating its multi-mission role combining radar surveillance, communications intelligence (COMINT), and electronic intelligence (ELINT). These functions could correlate vehicle movements detected by the ASARS-2B with communications activity or radar emissions, although receiver frequency coverage, emitter-location accuracy, and simultaneous collection capacity remain undisclosed. The Army is also considering underwing pylons for defensive equipment and launched-effects drones capable of reconnaissance, electronic warfare, deception, or attack missions.

Some long-range launched-effects concepts involve flight distances of 1,000 km, potentially extending collection beyond the crewed aircraft's immediate surveillance area. However, drone flight range does not establish an equivalent control-link distance, and no ME-11B-specific payload weights, certified pylons, drone inventory, or operational launch date have been confirmed. These capabilities therefore remain potential additions rather than established functions of the initial aircraft. The U.S. Army currently relies on contractor-operated reconnaissance jets following the retirement of its RC-12 Guardrail and MC-12 EMARSS fleets. L3Harris operates the Global 6000-series ARES, while MAG Aerospace and SNC each operate two Global 6500 ATHENA aircraft, providing four ATHENA jets; Leidos also operates a Challenger 650-based reconnaissance aircraft associated with the ARTEMIS.

These aircraft maintain intelligence collection while testing sensors and mission arrangements for HADES. On October 16, Andrew Evans, director of the Strategy and Transformation Office within the Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, confirmed that the service would not purchase these contractor-owned aircraft, despite an earlier contracting notice suggesting otherwise. Instead, the Army intends to retain service-based arrangements while seeking lower operating costs. The six ME-11Bs represent fewer than 15% of the Army's historical inventory of more than 40 RC-12X, MC-12S, and EO-5C aircraft, although differences in endurance and sensor productivity prevent a direct capacity comparison.

No fixed withdrawal date exists for ARES or ATHENA, making contractor-provided surveillance hours necessary until sufficient ME-11Bs become operational. The ME-11B will operate within the U.S. Army's Multi-Domain Sensing System (MDSS), which also envisages high-altitude unmanned aircraft, stratospheric balloons, and distributed sensors to supplement crewed reconnaissance. At 15,545 m, the Global 6500's simplified geometric horizon to a surface point is 633 km, while some projected long-range air defense threats involve nominal missile ranges approaching 1,609 km. These figures measure different capabilities and do not establish assured interception, but they illustrate why altitude and standoff distance alone cannot guarantee aircraft survivability.

High-altitude balloons could provide extended collection periods, although atmospheric conditions constrain their positioning, while autonomous reconnaissance aircraft could extend surveillance into areas unsuitable for non-stealthy crewed jets. Their contribution would depend on endurance, sensor performance, communications, and processing capacity, particularly when multiple systems generate simultaneous radar and electromagnetic intelligence to sustain the surveillance coverage previously expected from the larger crewed reconnaissance fleet.

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Written by Jérôme Brahy

Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, South Korea, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.