Denmark is buying four MQ-9B SkyGuardian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), manufacturuer General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) announced on 23 July 2025.
The purchase, which includes three Certified Ground Control Stations, was aided and supported by the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA), which has added the MQ-9B to its portfolio of defence systems to contract on behalf of European nations with the goal of enhancing interoperability while facilitating training and joint operations.
Denmark thus joins a growing list of European countries that have selected the MQ-9B. The platform provides pole-to-pole satellite control as well as de-icing capabilities that enable missions in the harsh conditions of the Arctic in support of Denmark and its NATO allies. Additionally, the MQ-9B’s in-house-developed detect-and-avoid System allows the MQ-9B to fly in unsegregated airspace for domestic civilian operations, making it highly versatile for operations from Denmark.
On 29 April 2025 the MQ-9B (in the form of the Royal Air Force Protector RG Mk1 UAV) became the first large UAV to obtain a Military Type Certificate (MTC) from the UK’s Military Aviation Authority, certifying its safe operation without geographic restrictions, including over populous areas.
“It’s been a very productive year for our MQ-9B platforms,” GA-ASI President David R Alexander was quoted as saying in a company press release. “First, we earned MTC and now we’ve added Denmark to the UK, Belgium and Poland as MQ-9B customers in Europe. I believe the extensive waters of the North Sea, Norwegian Sea and Baltic Sea of the Nordic countries make the MQ-9B a very effective tool for national maritime surveillance and security.”
GA-ASI bills the MQ-9B SkyGuardian as the first and only unmanned system to offer multi-domain intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and targeting (ISR&T) as an internal payload that can search the ocean’s surface and its depths in support of fleet operations. The MQ-9B can also be fitted with a number of payloads, including a maritime surveillance package with a 360° maritime radar and/or sonobuoy dispensing pods.
Denmark is joining the UK, Belgium and Poland as a European operator of the MQ-9B SkyGuardian. [GA-ASI]