ScanEagle
Country: 
United StatesManufacturer: Insitu (Boeing subsidiary)
The Boeing/Insitu ScanEagle is the world's most widely deployed catapult-launched ISR drone: 24 hours endurance with heavy-fuel engine, runway-less Sky Hook recovery, it is the platform of choice for the US Navy, USMC and 20+ allied navies for maritime ISR missions.
The Boeing/Insitu ScanEagle is the world's most widely deployed catapult-launched ISR drone: 24 hours endurance with heavy-fuel engine, runway-less Sky Hook recovery, it is the platform of choice for the US Navy, USMC and 20+ allied navies for maritime ISR missions.
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- Reliability
- Unverified
- Sources
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Identity
- Designation
- ScanEagle
- Alias
- Insitu / Boeing ScanEagle
- Manufacturer
- Insitu (Boeing subsidiary)
- Country
- United States
- Year
- 2005
- Category
- ISR (Reconnaissance)
- Class
- Small (< 25 kg)
- Status
- In service
Performance
- Range
- 100 km
- Endurance
- 24 h+
- Top speed
- 148 km/h
- Service ceiling
- 5,950 m
- Propulsion
- Pistone 2T heavy fuel, 1.5 hp
Physical characteristics
- MTOW
- 22 kg
- Payload
- 3.4 kg
Onboard systems
- Sensors
- EO/IR gimbal Insitu Alticam con zoom HD, SIGINT opzionale
- Datalink / control
- LOS C-band, range 100 km, mesh opzionale
- Launch
- Catapulta pneumatica SuperWedge
- Recovery
- Sky Hook (gancio su cavo) — operabile da navi
Combat use
- ▸Iraq, Afghanistan (2005-) — USMC and SOCOM ISR
- ▸Anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden (2009-)
- ▸Ukraine (2022-) — donated by the US (15+ systems)
- ▸Yemen (2015-) — Saudi-led coalition
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Main operators
History
Derived from the civilian SeaScan tuna-fishing drone, the ScanEagle has been in US Navy service since 2005. More than 1 million flight hours accumulated since 2004.
Since 2022 over 30 ScanEagles have been delivered to Ukraine, where they serve as long-range eyes for targeting Harpoon missiles and long-range HIMARS artillery.
On the development side, the Boeing/Insitu ScanEagle started in 2002 as a civilian tuna-spotting platform (SeaScan) and was adapted to military use: launched from a SuperWedge pneumatic catapult and recovered with the Skyhook system (a vertical cable that 'snags' the drone in flight), it requires no runway.
On the naval and small-unit battlefield, the ScanEagle is fielded by the US Navy, USMC, UK, Australia, Canada and 20+ allied navies for maritime ISR, convoy escort, anti-piracy and special-forces support.
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