The Boeing Insitu RQ-21 Blackjack, formerly called the Integrator, is an American unmanned air vehicle designed and built by Boeing Insitu to meet a United States Navy requirement for a small tactical unmanned air system (STUAS). It is a twin-boomed, single-engined, monoplane, designed as a supplement to the Boeing Scan Eagle. The Boeing Insitu RQ-21 'Blackjack' (formerly known as the 'Integrator') is an in-development Unmanned Air System (UAS) intended to supplant the Boeing Scan Eagle UAV currently in service with the United States Navy and several other US allies.
ARLINGTON,Va. — The Navy has awarded a contract for Blackjack and ScanEagle unmannedaerial vehicles for the Navy and Marine Corps and several foreign nations.
- The RQ-21A Blackjack is a twin-engine unmanned aircraft used to support maritime and land operations. The vehicle, a larger follow-up to the Scan Eagle, is fitted to perform reconnaissance.
- ScanEagle is a long-endurance unmanned aerial system (UAS) designed and manufactured by Insitu Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company. ScanEagle has redefined intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance services for Group 2 UAS.
Scan Eagle Vs Blackjack
Insitu Inc.of Bingen, Washington, was awarded by the Naval Air Systems Command a $390.1million firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract forup to 63 RQ-21A [Blackjack] attrition air vehicles for the U.S. Marine Corpsand U.S. Navy,” a June 28 Defense Department announcement said. “In addition,this contract provides for up to six RQ-21A unmanned aircraft systems and up to17 RQ-21A air vehicles for foreign military sales customers, including thegovernments of Canada, Poland and Oman.”
Scaneagle Vs Blackjack
Insitu also willalso provide up to 93 ScanEagle UASs in various configurations, theannouncement said. “In addition, this contract provides for associatedservices, including training, test and engineering, development of engineeringchange proposals, operations support, organizational level maintenance, fieldservice representatives, land and ship surveys, hardware site activations,hardware installs, repairs, and data.”
The RQ-21ABlackjack has seen service as a surveillance platform with the Marine Corps inAfghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Libya. Contractor-owned and operated ScanEagleshave operated in support of U.S. and partner nations in Iraq and Afghanistan.The ScanEagle also has be operated by U.S. Special Operations command and byseveral foreign nations.
The ordersare expected to be completed by June 2022.