Group : Reconnaissance Rotorcrafts
Status : Cancelled
Also Known As : MQ-8
Origin : United States of America
Contractors : Northrop Grumman*, Schweizer Aircraft
Initial Operational Capability (IOC) : 2005
Total Production : ?

The RQ-8A Fire Scout also includes a HMMWV-mounted ground control station for use by the USMC and the the Tactical Control Station (TCS) developed for US Navy ships. It provides coverage 110nm from launch site providing ISR (Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance) and targeting through its Electro-Optical and IR sensors and a laser designator. The Fire Scout will also act as a communications node within the network centric warfare battle space supporting other platforms. It is powered by a single Rolls Royce 250-C20W engine and features a 3-blade main rotor that could be replaced by a 4-blade rotor extending Fire Scout range, payload and flight endurance.

The Fire Scout will replace the Pioneer UAV. In the future, the valuable Fire Scout will provide accurate targeting to warships equipped with Extended Range Guided Projectiles (ERGM) and land attack missiles. For this reason the US Army and the US Navy are testing the Fire Scout under the MQ-8 designation. In 2005 the RQ-8 program was restructured with the RQ-8A aircraft deemed as the test version of more capable MQ-8B which was scheduled to be the first full operational model deployed with the Armed Forces of the United States.

Group : Reconnaissance Rotorcrafts
Status : Cancelled
Also Known As : Class IV UAS, RQ-8B Fire Scout
Origin : United States of America
Contractors : Northrop Grumman*, Schweizer Aircraft
Initial Operational Capability (IOC) : 2008
First Flight : December 2006
Total Production : 175
Unitary Cost : USD $16.2 million

In early 2004 the FCS lead systems integrators, Boeing and SAIC, selected Northrop-Grumman RQ-8B Fire Scout as the FCS Class IV Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). The FCS Class IV UAS will perform Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance, Targeting and Precision Strike missions. The RQ-8B UAS will feature a new four-blade rotor, versus the three-blade rotor of A models, that will provide better flight characteristics and the capability to accommodate greater payloads. The flight endurance carrying a 130-pound (59 kg) payload will exceed eight hours. The maximum payload capacity could reach the 600-pound figure. The weapon options related to the Class IV UAS will include laser guided APKWS rockets and Viper Strike precision munitions. The electronic package, ground control station, sensors and other equipment must be selected by FCS lead systems integrators. Typically, the Class IV UAS (Fire Scout) will operate at 150 nautical miles from its ground station carrying a wide range of payloads depending on the mission requirement.

In 2005, the RQ-8B was re-designated as the MQ-8B Fire Scout to reflect its multi-mission capabilities which included the ability to fire weapons in addition to the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities demonstrated on the RQ-8A model. The US Navy slated the MQ-8B UAV to be fielded with the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) beginning in 2009. As of early 2006, Northrop-Grumman was producing 12 MQ-8B Fire Scout aircraft. Four for the US Navy and eight for the US Army. In August 2006, the US Navy awarded Northrop-Grumman a $136 million modification contract to complete the Vertical Take-off and Landing Tactical Unmanned Air Vehicle (VTUAV) System Development and Demonstration (SDD) phase through 2008. A total of nine MQ-8B Navy Fire Scouts are planned to be built under the SDD phase. In February 2007, the US Navy ordered two more aircraft. The program was cancelled in favor of the larger MQ-8C.

Group : Reconnaissance Rotorcrafts
Status : Active
Origin : United States of America
Contractors : Northrop Grumman*, Bell Textron, Cubic Corporation, GE Aviation, Honeywell, Rolls-Royce, Sierra Nevada Corporation, Summit Aviation
Initial Operational Capability (IOC) : December 3, 2014
First Flight : October 31, 2013
Total Production : 38
Unitary Cost : USD $33 million

The MQ-8C Fire Scout is an upgraded variant of the MQ-8 unmanned rotorcraft combining the Bell 407 helicopter airframe and the MQ-8B unmanned system architecture. The Fire Scout endurance upgrade, designated the MQ-8C, provides greater endurance, range and payload capacity in support of intelligence-gathering missions. The new variant is a product derived from the Fire-X technological demonstrator. Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor for the MQ-8C program with Bell Helicopter supplying the Bell 407 airframe and Rolls-Royce the Model 250 turboshaft engine. On April 23, 2012, the US Navy awarded Northrop Grumman a $262 million contract for eight MQ-8C aircraft. The US Navy plans call for the procurement of 28 rotorcrafts. As of December 2014, the procurement program scope increased to 70 aircraft. The US Navy final procurement program is for 38 aircraft to be delivered by 2021.