U.S. Air Force expands tests of glider-based spy drone

The U.S. Air Force has more than doubled the value of its contract with DZYNE Technologies for operational testing of ULTRA, a glider-like surveillance drone that can stay in the air for more than three days, the U.S. Department of War announced.

The $46.1 million modification raises the contract’s total value to $85.6 million, up from $39.6 million. It covers operational assessment of the Uncrewed Long-Endurance Tactical Reconnaissance Aircraft, with work in the United States and at overseas locations through March 26, 2031. The Air Force obligated $12.3 million in fiscal 2025 research and development funds at award. The Air Force Life Cycle Management Center in Dayton, Ohio, is managing the contract.

ULTRA is built on the airframe of the Stemme S12, a German two-seat motor glider, fitted for remote operation. The Air Force Research Laboratory’s Center for Rapid Innovation began the project with DZYNE in 2019 and took it from concept to first flight in under 10 months.

The aircraft weighs about 1,360 kg (3,000 pounds) and has a wingspan of 25 m (82 feet). It can fly for more than 80 hours carrying over 180 kg (400 pounds) of cameras, signals-collection gear or other sensors, and it is controlled over satellite links. It cruises at roughly 130 km/h (81 mph) and needs a runway of about 1,500 m (5,000 feet). The laboratory says ULTRA can travel more than 3,200 km (2,000 miles) and still loiter over a target for a full day.

That endurance is what the Air Force is buying. The MQ-9 Reaper, the service’s main surveillance drone since 2008, spends much of its flight time getting to and from distant areas. The research laboratory designed ULTRA for long-range missions, pointing specifically to the Pacific.

ULTRA has already flown operationally. The Air Force deployed it to an undisclosed location in May 2024, and The War Zone reported that it was flying from Al Dhafra Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. Those missions reportedly complemented MQ-9s over the Middle East. The Air Force requested four ULTRA aircraft for $35 million in its fiscal 2025 budget.

DZYNE has since developed ULTRA Turbo, a version with a turbocharged engine for better performance at high altitude. The company said in April that the Air Force Research Laboratory had ordered three ULTRA Turbo aircraft, after a first flight above 5,500 m (18,000 feet). DZYNE has also reported a 60-hour mission-representative flight at 7,600 m (25,000 feet) and 185 km/h (115 mph).

Air Force budget documents cited by The War Zone show ULTRA Turbo is due for an operational assessment within U.S. Central Command’s area, the Middle East, starting in fiscal 2026 and continuing into 2027. The contract announcement does not say whether the new funding supports that effort.

DZYNE says the aircraft can also carry electronic warfare equipment, relay communications and launch other payloads. The company opened a 11,600 square meter (125,000-square-foot) facility in Irvine, California, in 2024 to build ULTRA and its other long-endurance drones.