General Atomics XQ-67 OBSS

The OBSS (Off-Board Sensing Station) program was begun by the Air Force in 2021. The goal was to develop an unmanned platform with a specialized sensor suite, which could cooperate with manned fighters to provide targeting and threat information. Initially, contracts were awarded to Kratos and General Atomics, and the latter became the sole-source contractor for the flight vehicle, when Kratos was eliminated from the competition in 2023. At some time in late 2023 or early 2024, the designation XQ-67A was assigned to the OBSS UAV. The first flight of the XQ-67A occurred on 28 February 2024.

The XQ-67A is of relatively conventional wing-body-tail design, with a general layout rather similar to contemporary UAVs like the XQ-58A Valkyrie and MQ-25A Stingray. It is powered by a single jet engine, presumably a turbofan. Otherwise, no details about the XQ-67A's equipment or characteristics have been published.

Photo: AFRL

XQ-67A

Designation Note: The designation XQ-67A is out of sequence in the Q-series. The design number 67 was taken from the X-series, following on from the last published X-plane designation, X-66A. It is essentially certain, that a plain X-67 designation will be skipped. The same has happened before with the XQ-58A, which also used its number 58 from the X-series (a plain X-58 was never assigned), even though an XQ-xx designation should get its number from the Q-series.

Specifications

Detailed characteristics of the XQ-67A are not yet available.

Main Sources

[1] Janes, Zach Rosenberg: General Atomics unveils XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station UAV
[2] The War Zone; Jamie Hunter et.al.: General Atomics’ XQ-67A Off-Board Sensing Station Drone Breaks Cover
[3] Breaking Defense, Michael Marrow: General Atomics debuts new XQ-67A Air Force sensing drone

Back to Directory of U.S. Military Rockets and Missiles, Appendix 2

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Last Updated: 13 March 2024