An MQ-25 Stingray test asset conducts deck handling maneuvers in 2021 while underway aboard the USS George H.W. Bush. This unmanned carrier aviation demonstration marked the first time the Navy conducted testing with the MQ-25 at sea. (U.S. Navy)

The Navy recently outfitted an aircraft carrier with the first drone operations center, furthering the service’s high-tech pursuit into remotely piloted aircraft.

The MQ-25 Stingray warfare center was installed aboard the USS George H.W. Bush, which is based at Naval Station Norfolk, Va., according to an Aug. 15 announcement from Naval Air Systems Command. The MQ-25 Stingray, built by Boeing, is a tanker drone designed to refuel manned fighter jets in midair.

Early next year, the Bush will put the warfare center to the test, leading the first at-sea trial of the center’s networks. The crew won’t operate a Stingray but will instead use the software to communicate with a simulated aircraft in a lab in Patuxent River, Md.

The carrier-based warfare center lays the foundation for how the Navy will operate unmanned aircraft, said Capt. Daniel Fucito, manager of the service’s unmanned carrier aviation program.

“These systems will initially support the MQ-25 but also future unmanned systems such as collaborative combat aircraft that comprise the air wing of the future,” he said.

The first installation of an unmanned air warfare center aboard USS George H.W. Bush, where air vehicle pilots will control MQ-25 Stingray airborne operations. (U.S. Navy)

The Navy plans to install unmanned warfare centers on all Nimitz- and Ford-class carriers, making them Stingray-capable. Some systems necessary to operate the refueling drone already are being fabricated for the USS Carl Vinson, USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS Ronald Reagan, with installation scheduled to begin in fiscal 2025.

“Our program is accomplishing things on a much faster timeline than any other normal startup program,” said Gordon Carlon, acting team lead for the installation of carrier-based warfare centers.

Boeing was awarded the contract to develop the Stingray, first testing a prototype in 2019. In 2021, the drone was tested aboard the Bush, conducting the first air-to-air refueling of an F-18 Super Hornet and F-35 Lightning II, both fighter jets, and an E-2 Hawkeye, which are used to gather information.

When the program is fully operational, the carrier-based Stingray will be operated by a team in the warfare center aboard the warship.

The goal of the Stingray, Boeing has said, is to extend the flight range of manned combat aircraft, thus extending the striking range of carrier air wings.