The Department of the Navy announced the MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) received milestone C approval, Sept. 22.

This decision by Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (AT&L) Honorable Frank Kendall, allows the MQ-4C Triton program to enter into Low Rate Initial Production (LRIP), the first part of the production and deployment phase.

“This milestone brings us closer to delivering a new capability to the fleet that will change the way our Navy executes ISR around the globe,” said Sean Burke, Triton program manager. “Teamed with manned counterparts, Triton’s highly capable sensor package will provide persistent maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance [ISR] data collection and dissemination capabilities to the fleet.

The MQ-4C Triton will be a forward- deployed, land-based, autonomously operated system that provides persistent ISR within a range of 2,000 nautical miles using a multi-sensor mission payload including maritime radar, Electro-Optical/Infrared (EO/IR), Electronic Support Measures (ESM), Automatic Identification System (AIS) and basic communications relay.

“Triton’s 24-hour on-station capability lets our other aircraft, such as the P-8, to focus more completely on their core missions,” Burke said.

Triton is scheduled to deploy in fiscal year 2018.