UK Royal Navy Tests Wildcat Helicopter as Drone Control Hub for Long-Range Naval Operations.

The Royal Navy linked a modified Wildcat HMA2 Helicopter with multiple drones, Royal Marines and command teams during Exercise Dragon Rider across southern England. The trial could extend a naval force’s surveillance and targeting reach without requiring its ships or crewed aircraft to move closer to a threat.

During Exercise Dragon Rider, a specially modified aircraft transmitted imagery and data collected by uncrewed systems to a control centre at RNAS Yeovilton. The Wildcat Helicopter is therefore no longer limited to searching for targets with its own sensors. It also serves as an airborne gateway among drones deployed forward, ground-based operators, and commanders aboard a ship or a naval task group.

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By positioning a Wildcat at altitude between the drones and the control station, the Royal Navy can partly overcome radio-horizon restrictions and terrain masking (Picture source: UK MoD)

This architecture addresses a basic limitation of small tactical drones. Their low weight makes them easier to launch from land or a ship, but it also limits the power available for communications and, therefore, the range of their direct control links. By positioning a Wildcat at altitude between the drones and the control station, the Royal Navy can partly overcome radio-horizon restrictions and terrain masking. A single helicopter can receive several video feeds, redistribute them and allow operators to take control of the aircraft at distances beyond those normally supported by their ground stations.

According to information published by the Royal Navy on 5 August 2026, Dragon Rider covered more than 200 miles, or around 320 kilometres, between the Lizard Peninsula, Somerset and Salisbury Plain. The exercise was conducted by the Maritime Aviation Strike Operational Advantage Group based at Yeovilton. The Wildcat, fitted with additional sensors and communications equipment, acted as a relay between several drones operating across southern England and a central control facility. Participants received multiple real-time video feeds, exchanged secure messages and took control of the drones through the network.

Dragon Rider follows Exercise Eagles Eye, held in Cornwall in January 2026. During that first phase, a Wildcat from 815 Naval Air Squadron received data from a Royal Navy RQ-20 Puma and a Providence drone operated by UAV Aerosystems. Personnel from 700X Naval Air Squadron also controlled the Puma from inside the helicopter. Imagery from the drones, combined with information from ground-based sensors, was used to locate and track a moving vehicle in preparation for a simulated engagement with Martlet missiles.

The main development introduced during Dragon Rider concerns scale. Eagles Eye showed that an aircrew could receive information from several sensors and control a drone from a Wildcat. The later exercise connected platforms and users dispersed over several hundred kilometres. Control was no longer tied to a single cockpit. It could be transferred between the Yeovilton centre, the helicopter and other nodes in the network, preparing the way for drones launched from different ships or from Royal Marines operating ashore.

The Wildcat HMA2 is the Fleet Air Arm’s light maritime reconnaissance and attack helicopter. Its Seaspray 7400E active electronically scanned array radar is used to detect and track surface contacts, while its Wescam MX-15Di electro-optical turret supports identification. The aircraft can carry the lightweight Martlet missile against fast attack craft and Sea Venom against larger vessels. The Wildcat therefore retains the ability to detect and engage targets, while drones provide access to observation angles and areas that the helicopter could not monitor without moving closer.

The Providence is a small fixed-wing drone designed for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions. Its operational relevance lies less in carrying a large payload than in allowing several sensors to be deployed with a lower logistical footprint than an additional helicopter. During Eagles Eye, it transmitted a video feed to the Wildcat while the Puma was controlled directly from the aircraft. Dragon Rider showed that the same principle could be extended to several drones through a mobile ad hoc network.

In this mesh network, each radio can relay data from another node. If one route is jammed, masked or otherwise unavailable, the information can be redirected through other active transmitters. This arrangement improves communications resilience but does not remove constraints linked to bandwidth, electronic interference and the detectability of active emissions. The next step announced by the Royal Navy is the integration of satellite communications, which would allow drones deployed overseas to be controlled from a facility in the United Kingdom.

The clearest operational application is in countering fast attack craft and monitoring coastal approaches. During Exercise Tamber Shield 2026 in Norway, British Wildcats worked with drones against fast boats in the fjords around Bergen. In such an environment, several Providence or Puma drones could be positioned ahead of a frigate to observe separate inlets, track contacts concealed by terrain and transmit their locations to the Wildcat. The helicopter could remain behind the forward sensors, combine their imagery with radar data and move closer only when identification or a Martlet engagement was required.

In the North Sea, the Norwegian fjords or the approaches to the Baltic, this arrangement could monitor several channels, anchorages and shipping routes without keeping multiple Wildcats airborne. It could also support carrier group protection, reconnaissance ahead of a Royal Marines landing or the designation of a hostile craft beyond direct visual range. For the United Kingdom and its Joint Expeditionary Force partners, the architecture offers a way to cover a wider area with a limited number of crewed aircraft while reducing the time helicopters spend within range of hostile air defences.

Written By Erwan Halna du Fretay - Defense Analyst, Army Recognition Group
Erwan Halna du Fretay holds a Master’s degree in International Relations and has experience studying conflicts and global arms transfers. His research interests lie in Security and strategic studies, particularly the dynamics of the defense industry, the evolution of military technologies, and the strategic transformation of armed forces.