MQ-25A Stingray Test Connects Shipboard Control Station to Aircraft by Satellite
A report published October 19 says the Navy remotely controlled an MQ-25A from USS Ronald Reagan using a shipboard Ground Control Station and satellite network.
FlyMarshall Newsroom · via The Aviationist2 min readImage: The Aviationist
A report published October 19, 2026, says the Navy remotely controlled an MQ-25A Stingray through the MD-5C Ground Control Station aboard USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76). The aircraft reportedly operated from MidAmerica St. Louis Airport in Mascoutah, Illinois, while the carrier was in the Pacific. A Proliferated Low Earth Orbit satellite network connected the aircraft with the shipboard control station.
The test linked an MQ-25A at MidAmerica St. Louis Airport with a Ground Control Station aboard USS Ronald Reagan at sea in the Pacific.
What has been confirmed
The available source attributes the announcement to Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao and says the Navy issued a statement. The details in the fact set are classified as likely, rather than officially confirmed, so the specific test details should be treated as reported, not independently confirmed. The source does not identify the MQ-25A airframe used. Its suggestion that a production-representative test aircraft may have taken part is an inference.Why it matters
The reported test links an aircraft operating from an airport in Illinois with a control station aboard a carrier in the Pacific. That demonstration would exercise a way to manage an unmanned aircraft across long distances, a capability relevant to future carrier-based aviation.FlyMarshall context
The MQ-25A is a Navy unmanned aircraft program. A Ground Control Station gives operators a place to manage an aircraft remotely; the satellite connection described in the report bridged the distance between the land-based aircraft and the ship at sea. The test reportedly focused on checking the MD-5C station’s hardware and software, along with procedures, networks, and interfaces.What happens next
The source does not name the participating aircraft or provide a schedule for further tests. It describes the activity as part of a series of build-up exercises intended to validate the control station and its supporting connections.Continue reading
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