Australia announces new funding for MQ-28A after live-fire test

An MQ-28A Ghost Bat carries an AIM-120 AMRAAM on 8 December 2025, during Trial Kareela 25-4 at RAAF Base Woomera, South Australia. (Commonwealth of Australia)

The Australian government has announced additional funding to further develop the Boeing MQ-28A Ghost Bat Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) a day after the platform successfully engaged a fighter-class unmanned aerial target (UAT) with a live air-to-air weapon.

The new funding, approximately AUD1.4 billion (USD929 million), will further develop collaborative air capabilities to transition the MQ-28A “into a fully operational warfighting asset for the Australian Defence Force (ADF)”, the Australian Department of Defence (DoD) said on 9 December.

According to the DoD, “the latest investment includes new contracts with Boeing Defence Australia (BDA) for six operational Block 2 MQ-28A aircraft and the development of an enhanced Block 3 prototype”. BDA announced on 9 December that it had won an AUD754 million contract “to deliver, develop, and support a third tranche” of MQ-28 Ghost Bats over the next three years.

The AUD754 million agreement “cements BDA's MQ-28 partnership with the RAAF [Royal Australian Air Force] and Australian industry through to 2028”, said Amy List, BDA managing director.

Under the AIR6015 Autonomous Collaborative Platforms – Air Programme, Boeing is to deliver additional Block 2 and Block 3 aircraft to support the development of an operational capability by 2028. The company has said that it will also “progress delivery of the capability system and supporting infrastructure for the RAAF to supplement existing crewed fleet with integrated CCA”.

“The programme of record follows the completion of a successful development programme, with eight MQ-28A and multiple highly capable mission payload modules produced, and a further three Block 2 aircraft in final production or testing phases,” the company added.