Reporters are invited to cover flight preparation and launch of Air Guard MQ-9 on Tuesday, July 30

Media Advisory

HANCOCK FIELD, SYRACUSE, NEW YORK (07/29/2024) (readMedia)-- The New Yorfk Air Natiopnal Guard's 174th Attack Wing is inviiting reporters to cover the launch of an MQ-9 Reaper from Hancock Field Air National Guard Base, that will be flying to headed to the Rochester Air Show, on Tuesday, July 30, 2024.

Members of the press will be able to observe New York Air National Guard Airmen preparing the aircraft for launch, watch the takeoff, and talk to experts about the process.

WHO: MQ-9 Reaper maintenance experts from the 174th Attack Wing.

WHAT: Reporters can cover the preparation and launch of an MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft from Hancock Field Air National Guard Base. The takeoff, flight, and landing of the aircraft at Rochester International Airport will be controlled by a flight crew from the 107th Attack Wing based at Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station. The aircraft will be on display during the annual Rochester Air Show on August 3-4.

WHERE: Media will enter Hancock Field Air National Guard Base through the Main Gate on East Molloy Road

WHEN: Media should arrive no later than 8:30 a.m.

Coverage opportunities:

Still and video images of the preparation and launch of the MQ-9. There will also be opportunities to film B-roll footage and interview members of the MQ-9 who maintain and operate the aircraft, to include maintainers, pilots, and sensor operators.

Members of the press must call Major Suzanne Jedrosko at 315-744-0693 for access to this secure military facility no later than 5 p.m. on July 29. Press must have identification.

BACKFGROUND

The 174th has exhibited their MQ-9s at other air shows, but then they had to be trucked to the location and assembled at the site.

Thanks to new satellite control technology, the Guard pilots can fly the aircraft to the Rochester Airshow being held at Frederick Douglass Greater Rochester International Airport on August 3-4 from Hancock Field Air National Guard Base.

This year, pilots and sensor operators based out of the 107th Attack Wing at Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station will operate the aircraft.

"Flying to the Rochester air show gives us a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate the capabilities of this amazing aircraft to our local communities," said Col, John O'Connor, commander of the 174th.

"It's another airplane with a pilot controlling it landing at the airport," O'Connor said.

Doing so has not been a normal operation at a civilian airport, and, up until now, MQ-9 participation in airshows has always been limited to transporting the aircraft in by truck and assembling it on-site.

Col Brett Batick, deputy commander of the 174th Attack Wing, said "pushing past those barriers will greatly accelerate the efforts to have this platform and those like it be recognized for their ability to safely operate in the national airspace structure like any other aircraft."

The MQ-9 platform no longer requires large maintenance teams or restrictions to select airfields.

"We are extremely grateful for the efforts of the 174th Attack Wing to help position our airport as a leader in the Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA), Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), and Uncrewed Aerial Systems (UAS) space," said Syracuse Regional Airport Authority Executive Director Jason Terreri.

"By becoming the first commercial service airport in the nation to see an unescorted military RPA integrate smoothly into commercial service traffic, our airfield has become a template for airports across the nation facing the challenges of integrating new and emerging technology into the commercial service airport environment."

Recent advances in technology have enabled light, easily mobile, and agile maintenance teams to move quickly to service the aircraft at different locations, greatly expanding landing site and servicing options locally and throughout the world.

The 174th Attack Wing flies the MQ-9 remotely piloted aircraft. From a command center at Hancock Field, members of the wing operate aircraft at locations around the world.

The 174th Attack Wing transitioned from the F-16 Falcon fighter to the MQ-9 in 2010.

The wing also conducts training for the pilot and sensor operator teams which fly the aircraft and the mechanics who keep the MQ-9 flying. The wing trains Airmen from the active Air Force, the Air Force Reserve, the Air National Guard, and allied nations.

The wing was the first Air Force unit to fly an MQ-9 from a commercial airport in 2015.