Drone Refuels Manned Aircraft For First Time: Navy

It lasted just minutes and transferred only 300 pounds of fuel, but it was a historic first when a manned aircraft refueled in mid-air from a drone tanker. That tanker was Boeing’s prototype MQ-25 Stingray, designated test asset T1, and the manned aircraft was a Navy F/A-18F Super Hornet.

Over four-and-a-half cautious hours on Friday, two Navy test pilots painstakingly approached and withdrew from the drone, approached and withdrew again, testing everything and all performed as the models predicted. Then they connected the Hornet’s refueling probe to drone’s hose-and-drogue fuel line a total of four times, twice for dry runs and twice taking on actual fuel: 300 pounds at 10,000 feet, then 25 pounds at 15,000.

All systems were nominal, with just one surprise, Boeing program manager David Bujold told reporters. The MQ-25 was so quiet the test pilots could actually hear each other in the cockpit while they were right behind it taking on fuel. That’s a stark contrast from how it’s typically done today, when one Super Hornet takes on fuel from another fighter, and the engine noise is deafening.