The U.S. Navy has activated its first operational squadron consisting only of aerial drones and will deploy this unit to patrol the Pacific Ocean and Asia.

"Unmanned Patrol Squadron 19 (VUP-19)" will exclusively operate the massive Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton, the largest unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) in the U.S. military that can fly 24/7 while on intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions lasting for up to 30 hours.

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Nicknamed "Big Red," VUP-19 will consist only UAVs, a first for the Navy. It was established on Oct. 1, 2013.

The squadron will fall under Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 11 that also flies the manned Boeing P-8 Poseidon anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and anti-surface warfare (ASUW) aircraft.

VUP-19 will first be deployed to the United States Seventh Fleet operating in Asia, said Rear Adm. DeWolfe Miller III, Director, Air Warfare (OPNAV N98).

The squadron has no MQ-4Cs at present but will receive its first UAVs in late 2017. By the time it reaches early operational capability in 2018, the squadron will be flying its MQ-4Cs in and around Anderson Air Base in Guam.

After receiving its early operational capability, the Tritons will be moved as needed for Seventh Fleet operations in Asia. A second Triton squadron, VUP-11, will eventually be declared operational at NAS Whidbey Island in Washington state.

"It's just exciting: we talk about man-machine teaming, we talk about our unmanned vehicles, and now here's a milestone event where we're standing up a squadron and it's becoming a reality," said Adm. Miller.

"So I kind of get giddy over it because, it's interesting. I worked in N2/N6 as my first flag job four years ago when Triton was just getting unveiled at Northrop Grumman, and now to be the resource sponsor four years later as we're standing up the first squadron and getting ready to march towards deployment is pretty fulfilling."

In the meantime, the 130 personnel in VUP-19 have already begun rotating through Naval Air Station Patuxent River in Maryland to train. In January 2017, a Triton mission systems trainer will be delivered to NAS Jacksonville to further train the UAV operators.

The new squadron's crews will collaborate with P-8 pilots to develop tactics, techniques and procedures.

Developed under the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) program, the MQ-4C is intended to provide real-time ISR over vast ocean and coastal regions and provide continuous maritime surveillance.

The MQ-4C is a monster with a length of 14.5 meters; a wingspan of almost 40 meters and a height of 4.7 meters.

In contrast, the General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper is 11 meters long; has a 20 meter wingspan and is 3.8 meters tall.

Only the U.S. Navy flies the MQ-4C.

TagsU.S. Navy, Unmanned Patrol Squadron 19, VUP-19, Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton, Big Red, Rear Adm. DeWolfe Miller III