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Aug. 9, 2018 / 12:42 PM

Insitu tapped for RQ-21A spare, sustainment parts

U.S. Marines with Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron One prepare to launch an RQ-21 Blackjack UAS during Weapons and Tactics Instructors Course 1-18 at Yuma, Ariz., on Oct. 13, 2017. Photo by Lance Cpl. Rhita Daniel/U.S. Marine Corps

U.S. Marines with Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron One prepare to launch an RQ-21 Blackjack UAS during Weapons and Tactics Instructors Course 1-18 at Yuma, Ariz., on Oct. 13, 2017. Photo by Lance Cpl. Rhita Daniel/U.S. Marine Corps

Aug. 9 (UPI) -- Insitu has received a $9 million order against a previously issued contract to maintain the RQ-21A Blackjack unmanned aerial aircraft.

The order, announced Wednesday by the Department of Defense, provides for the procurement of spare and sustainment parts to maintain the RQ-21A Blackjack for the U.S. Marine Corps.

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Work will be performed in Bingen, Wash., and is expected to be completed in January 2019. Marine Corps fiscal 2016 aircraft procurement funds in the amount of $9 million will be obligated at time of award.

The RQ-21A Blackjack is an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance unmanned aerial system used by the Marine Corps and Navy. It uses a catapult for launch and a hook-and-line system for recovery, obviating the need for a runway and allowing it to be deployed from both land and ships.

Each system is composed of five aircraft, two ground command units and a launch and recovery system. The Blackjack can carry several kinds of mission payloads, including surveillance video, communications relays and target designation gear such as lasers.

The Blackjack has a range of over 30 miles and can stay in the air for up to 16 hours depending on the mission. It was first deployed the Marine Corps in 2016.

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