US, Taiwan Formalize MQ-9B UAV Deal Worth Over $500M

Taiwan has closed on an approximately $546.3 million contract with the U.S. government to buy four MQ-9B SeaGuardian unmanned aerial vehicles, manufactured by General Atomics‘ aeronautical systems business, Janes reported Wednesday.

Wang Ting-Yu, a member of the Taiwanese Democratic Progressive Party, confirmed the deal in a recent Facebook post, saying the two countries reached an agreement after “lengthy” discussions.

The formalized government-to-government transaction comes nearly two years after the State Department approved a $600 million foreign military sale of weapons-ready MQ-9Bs along with equipment to Taiwan.

According to the report, the first SeaGuardian delivery to the Taiwanese air force could happen sometime in 2025.

SeaGuardian is the maritime variant of General Atomics’ medium-altitude, long-endurance remotely piloted aircraft platform.

Sponsor