The Redwire Stalker UAS has established itself as a key component of Army programs, from training soldiers at the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence (USAACE) to the Long-Range Reconnaissance (LRR) contract for enhanced surveillance and target acquisition, Stalker is a combat proven system that has enabled multiple missions around the world.

Built with a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA), Stalker’s ability to quickly and efficiently integrate into multiple systems was on display at the U.S. Army’s recent Ivy Sting IV exercise with the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado. Redwire’s Stalker UAS, a modular Group 2 Uncrewed Aircraft System (UAS), worked towards integration with the Army’s Next Generation Command and Control (NGC2) tactical network. The limited integration at the event populated the aircraft’s real-time position location information and full motion video across the developing NGC2 ecosystem.

Continued integration into the NGC2 ecosystem will occur throughout the upcoming Ivy Sting Mass and Project Convergence Capstone 6 events, with the goal of full integration into the NGC2 ecosystem. Redwire’s anticipation of the Army’s transition to NGC2 as a replacement for legacy systems allows the Redwire team to proactively support this vital customer in achieving the Pentagon’s top communications priority: increased data through a fully encrypted network that will empower leaders to make crucial decisions with faster, secure intelligence.

“As the only fixed-wing VTOL to support this exercise, the Stalker’s deployment at Ivy Sting demonstrates how the aircraft’s modularity results in ease of integration with multiple Army networks,” says Joshua Stinson, Chief Growth Officer of Redwire Defense Tech. “The Stalker’s endurance, advanced capabilities, and maturity allow it to fulfill brigade level tasks normally covered by Group 3 aircraft—but with a much smaller logistics footprint.”

Redwire’s Flight Operations team has been a part of the entire Ivy Sting series of exercises, working with over 6,000 4th Infantry Division soldiers over the course of several months. During Ivy Sting IV, Stalker populated directly into a Stryker Infantry Carrier Vehicle to demonstrate its intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities, which include providing immediate battle damage assessment through full-motion video.

Throughout the exercise, the Stalker showcased its industry leading sensor.  Once fully integrated into the NGC2 ecosystem, the open-architecture will allow the platform to be more than a sensor; it will become a routing node. This will allow the UAS to extend the network’s reach to the tactical edge, ensuring that vital reconnaissance data flowed seamlessly to any authorized user on the Integrated Tactical Network. Once the Stalker acts in the capacity of an ATNE node, data will flow directly into the Artillery Execution Suite, enabling 4th Infantry Division’s DIVARTY (Division Artillery) to process fire missions and assess targets significantly faster than legacy systems.

Incorporating NGC2 supports the Pentagon’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control (JADC2) vision to move beyond traditional siloed systems by linking sensors and weapons across all military domains into a single, secure network that enables commanders to achieve decision superiority via fast, secure data. Eliminating the bottlenecks of legacy systems and increasing interoperability will result in a clearer, more unified picture of the battlefield that advances mission success and protects human lives.

As the Army moves toward Project Convergence-Capstone 6, this level of “plug-and-fight” integration will be the benchmark for the future of the networked battlefield. Redwire is committed to NGC2 integration and is proud to support the 4th Infantry Division in making the data-centric vision a reality for the modern warfighter, with a fully integrated Stalker on the horizon.

Learn more about how Redwire’s combat-proven Stalker UAS is pushing the limits of long endurance, long range reconnaissance through mission-ready flexibility and a modular open systems approach.