# MQ-4C Triton by Northrop Grumman

Canonical page: https://technooptimist.io/aviation/mq-4c-triton
Frontier: [Aviation](https://technooptimist.io/aviation.md) · Field: Scout & patrol drones · Company: [Northrop Grumman](https://technooptimist.io/companies/northrop-grumman.md)
Stage: Deploy (4 of 5: Research → Proto → Pilot → Deploy → Scaling)
Updated: last update 2026-10-01, facts checked 2026-10-11
Goal: Keep a constant, uncrewed watch over vast stretches of ocean: aircraft flying 24-hour-plus shifts track ships across millions of square nautical miles, freeing crewed patrol planes for other work.
Status: In service with the US Navy and Australia; one lost April 2026; no new US buys requested for FY27.
Next milestone: Fleet retrofit: 17 US and 16 Australian engineering changes, target Jun 2030

## Milestones

| Status | Milestone | Date | Slip |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Done | First flight, Palmdale, California | 22 May 2013 |   |
| Done | Joins the Navy fleet | 2018 |   |
| Done | First deployment: two aircraft to Guam | 26 Jan 2020 |   |
| Done | Buy cut from 68 to 27 aircraft, three bases instead of five | May 2023 |   |
| Done | Initial operational capability with squadron VUP-19 | Sep 2023 | +93 mo (originally Dec 2015) |
| Done | First deployment to Europe (Sigonella, Sicily) | Mar 2024 |   |
| Done | First RAAF Triton arrives in Australia | 16 Jun 2024 |   |
| Current | Fleet retrofit: 17 US and 16 Australian engineering changes | Jun 2030 |   |
| Planned | Australia's fourth Triton delivered | 2028 |   |

## Upcoming events

- **2028**: Australia's fourth Triton delivered
- **Jun 2030**: Fleet retrofit: 17 US and 16 Australian engineering changes

## Most important updates

- **Oct 2026**: Northrop gets a $66M order to retrofit fielded US and Australian Tritons. Naval Air Systems Command awarded Northrop a $66 million firm-fixed-price delivery order to retrofit Tritons already in service for the US Navy and Australia. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/northrop-gets-a-66m-order-to-retrofit-fielded-us-and-australian-tritons-fea063ea.md) · [original source](https://www.highergov.com/news/northrop-grumman-wins-66-million-mq-4c-triton-ret-6490276/))
- **7 Jul 2026**: Denmark, Finland, Germany and Norway announce plan to buy up to five MQ-4C Tritons for NATO. Four NATO allies announced at the NATO Summit Defence Industry Forum in Ankara that they intend to buy up to five Tritons. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/denmark-finland-germany-and-norway-announce-plan-to-buy-up-to-five-mq-f32863f5.md) · [original source](https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2026/07/nato-mq-4c-triton-procurement-uav-isr/))
- **9 Apr 2026**: Navy logs Class A mishap after an MQ-4C Triton is lost near the Persian Gulf. A Navy MQ-4C Triton disappeared from flight tracking over the Persian Gulf in early April 2026, and the Naval Safety Command recorded it as a Class A mishap. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/navy-logs-class-a-mishap-after-an-mq-4c-triton-is-lost-near-the-persian-3594536c.md) · [original source](https://breakingdefense.com/2026/04/navy-mq-4c-triton-suffers-class-a-mishap/))

## Current obstacles

- **Survivability over contested water**: A slow, high-flying $240M aircraft is easy to find; one vanished near the Strait of Hormuz in April 2026 and the Navy has not said why.
- **Small fleet, little spare**: With the buy cut to 27, two Class A mishaps in five months and no FY27 purchase requested, each lost or damaged airframe leaves a gap in coverage.

## Physics limits

- **Altitude trades against detail**: From 15 km up a radar sees ships hundreds of kilometres away over the horizon, but camera detail falls with distance, so identifying a ship means descending, often through weather.
- **Long wings mean low speed**: A 40 m wing on a 14.5 m body gives the lift-to-drag needed for day-long flights, but caps speed near 320 knots, so reaching a new patrol area can take hours.

## How it works

### Airframe: A Global Hawk hardened for the sea

Built on the RQ-4 Global Hawk, with a tougher lower fuselage against hail and bird strikes, de-iced wings and lightning protection.

### Radar: A radar that sees all the way round

The AN/ZPY-3 radar steers its beam electronically and scans 360 degrees from above 50,000 ft, finding and tracking ships across a huge area of sea.

### Descend to look: Drops down for a closer view

Unlike Global Hawk, it is built to descend quickly to lower altitude, where its electro-optical/infrared camera can get a closer look, then climb back.

### Patrol orbits: Shifts flown from a few bases

Crews on the ground fly it. Twelve operational aircraft cover three patrol areas; deployments so far have reached Guam, Japan, Sicily and the Middle East.

## Spec sheet

| Spec | MQ-4C Triton | RQ-4 Global Hawk (BAMS-D) | Provenance |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Endurance | 24+ hours |   | reported |
| Patrol altitude | Above 50,000 ft (15 km) |   | reported |
| Area covered per flight | Up to 4 million sq nmi |   | reported |
| Wingspan | 39.9 m (130 ft 11 in) |   | reported |
| Gross weight | 14,630 kg |   | reported |
| Maximum speed | 320 kn |   | reported |
| US Navy program of record | 27 aircraft | 68 planned | reported |
| Delivered to US Navy (2025) | 20 |   | reported |
| Value per aircraft | ~$240M |   | reported |
| Australian order | 4 aircraft |   | reported |

Provenance: reported = stated by the company; estimated = our estimate; sample = a sample figure.

## Peer comparison

- [Tekever AR3](https://technooptimist.io/aviation/ar3.md) (Deploy): Endurance 16 hours; Wingspan 3.5 m
- [General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-9B SkyGuardian / SeaGuardian](https://technooptimist.io/aviation/mq-9b-skyguardian.md) (Scaling): Endurance 40+ h; Wingspan 24 m (79 ft)

## About Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman builds defense and space systems: Cygnus cargo resupply for the ISS, the YFQ-48A fighter drone for the USAF, and on-orbit satellite servicing via MEV and MRV spacecraft.

- Cygnus XL resupply missions to ISS carry 5 tonnes per flight; 33% more capacity than standard Cygnus.
- Mission Robotic Vehicle launched July 2026 with a seven-DOF arm for satellite servicing and debris removal.
- YFQ-48A Talon autonomous fighter drone is a CCA contender with 30% faster assembly; first flight Q4 2026.

- Founded: 1939
- Headquarters: US
- Status: public
- Listing: NOC (NYSE)
- Valuation: $78B (market cap, 2026-01)
- Staff: ~95,000
- Website: https://www.northropgrumman.com
- People: Kathy Warden (Chief Executive Officer and Chair)
- Partners, customers, investors: NASA (customer); U.S. Air Force (customer); Intelsat (customer)

Company page: https://technooptimist.io/companies/northrop-grumman.md

## Related programs

More from Northrop Grumman:

- [YFQ-48A Talon](https://technooptimist.io/aviation/yfq-48a-talon.md) (Proto)
- [Cygnus XL](https://technooptimist.io/spaceflight/cygnus-xl.md) (Deploy)
- [Mission Extension Vehicles / Mission Robotic Vehicle](https://technooptimist.io/spaceflight/mev-mrv.md) (Deploy)
- [B-21 Raider](https://technooptimist.io/aviation/b-21-raider.md) (Pilot)
- [Solid rocket motor production ramp](https://technooptimist.io/manufacturing/solid-rocket-motor-ramp.md) (Scaling)

Everything in Aviation: https://technooptimist.io/aviation.md

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