The RAAF's MQ-28 Ghost Bat drone has completed public flight trials to demonstrate its operational capabilities. Performed for select journalists, the flight of the Boeing Loyal Wingman took place at RAAF Base Tindal in the Northern Territory.
The Capability Demonstration 2025 that took place between April and June of this year, capped by the highlight flight for the media, is the culmination of six years of development by the RAAF and Boeing Australia to create the first Australian designed and built combat plane since the Second World War.
According to Boeing, the recent test campaign comes after 150 flight hours and 20,000 simulated hours by the Ghost Bat, with real-world and digital development reinforcing one another to speed production. This resulted in the first prototype being delivered in May 2020 and the first flight in February 2021. As of today, eight prototype Block 1 vehicles have been delivered to the RAAF.
The goal of the test program was to demonstrate the operational capabilities of the MQ-28 Ghost Bat and included autonomous flight and mission execution, multiple aircraft operations for force multiplication, deployment to RAAF Base Tindal outside of the Woomera Training Area, teaming of a pair of Ghost Bats with an RAAF E-7A Wedgetail airborne early warning and control aircraft, and networking data between multiple Ghost Bats from a piloted aircraft.
With these capabilities validated, the next step will be to incorporate the improvements into the Block 2 aircraft, should production be given the green light, with advanced testing including air-to-air weapons slated for late this year or early 2026.
With a wingspan of 24 ft (7.3 m) and measuring 38 ft (11.7 m) long, the Ghost Bat is powered by a single Williams FJ33 turbofan engine that provides it with high-subsonic speed and a range of over 2,000 nautical miles (2,300 miles, 3,700 km). In addition, it has a modular nose section that can carry a wide variety of payloads, from reconnaissance sensors to weapon systems, and it has performance characteristics that will allow it to operate alongside conventional fighter aircraft.
However, there is more to the MQ-28 Ghost Bat than being a mere force multiplier or a robotic drone that can be sent into harm's way without endangering a human pilot. It represents a major change in Australian defense policy.
One part of this policy has been to not only expand the Australian armed forces in the face of the growing ambitions of China in an increasingly unstable world, but to move as much defense production as possible to Australia, hence the emphasis on developing and building Ghost Bat domestically.
Beyond this is the part Ghost Bat will play in Australia's defense. Traditionally, Australia's northern coast has been regarded as a vulnerability to be evacuated in the event of invasion and relying instead on the vastness of the continent as a buffer. That's changing now as the coast is being more heavily defended but will also be used as a base for force projection in the event of war. For this reason military bases in the north are being reinforced and expanded, naval bases established that can handle British and American nuclear submarines, and Australia is acquiring its own nuclear attack subs with far greater range than the present diesel boats.
Unfortunately, the northern coast is huge, spanning about 6,806 miles (10,953 km) and difficult to patrol. That's where Ghost Bat comes in. The fact it's being tested at RAAF Base Tindal is not a mere coincidence. It's part of the plan to make the Loyal Wingman exemplify the creation of a more integrated, networked force capable of projecting power. Key to this will be the ability to monitor and defend the coast, with the Ghost Bat acting as a force multiplier for tracking and interception as well as force projection.
Meanwhile, Ghost Bat may also find an international market with the US Navy showing interest in a carrier variant capable of in-flight refueling and talks underway with Poland about possible sales.
"The RAAF set the task of proving the first four steps in the Air Combat chain for the MQ-28 and we have accomplished that sooner than anticipated," said Glen Ferguson, MQ-28 Global program director. "Completing this work early allows us to accelerate the next phases of development – engage and assess – with an air-to-air weapon shot planned for later this year or in early 2026.The demonstrations have proven the maturity of MQ-28's capabilities, the utility of CCA's and their application to the future force mix."
Source: Boeing
