The General Atomics Gnat is an aerial reconnaissance UAV developed in the United States in the late 1980s and manufactured by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI). As initially designed, it was a simplified version of the LSI Amber intended for foreign sales. The Gnat 750 made its first flight in 1989.
20-510: The Gnat 750's configuration was similar to that of the Amber, except that the Gnat 750's wing was mounted low on the fuselage, instead of being mounted on a pylon on top. The Gnat 750 was somewhat larger than the Amber, but weighed less and could carry a heavier payload. The original name of the developing company before its acquisition by General Atomics was Leading Systems Incorporated (LSI). The aircraft
40-418: A 50–50 partner in 1973. When Gulf bought out its partner, it was renamed again to "GA Technologies Incorporated" in 1982. It was taken over by Chevron following its merger with Gulf Oil in 1984. In 1986, it was sold to a company owned by Neal Blue and Linden Blue . In 1979, Harold Agnew was appointed President and CEO of the company. In 1987, former US Navy Rear Admiral Thomas J. Cassidy Jr. joined
60-591: A next-generation derivative, the "Gnat 750-45", much better known as the Predator . General Atomics also used the Gnat 750 as the basis for a tactical UAV known as the " Prowler ". It appears similar to a Gnat 750, but is smaller, with a wingspan of 7.31 meters (24 ft) and a length of 4.24 meters (13.9 ft). It has an endurance of over 16 hours, and some commonality with Gnat 750 subsystems. Data from Air Vectors General characteristics Performance This article contains material that originally came from
80-525: A schoolhouse on San Diego's Barnard Street as its temporary headquarters, which it would later "adopt" as part of its Education Outreach program. In 1956, San Diego voters approved the transfer of land to GA for permanent facilities in Torrey Pines , and the John Jay Hopkins Laboratory for Pure and Applied Science was formally dedicated there on June 25, 1959. The Torrey Pines facility serves as
100-555: Is San Diego County's largest defense contractor, according to a September 2013 report by the San Diego Military Affairs Council. The top five contractors, ranked by defense-generated revenue in fiscal year 2013, were General Atomics, followed by Northrop Grumman , General Dynamics-NASSCO , BAE Systems , and SAIC . A separate October 2013 report by the San Diego Business Journal ranked contractors by
120-452: Is powered by a Rotax 912 piston flat-four four-cycle engine with 64 kW (85 hp). It can fly to an operational area from 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) away and loiter there for 12 hours before returning home. Eight Gnat 750s were in development when General Atomics bought out LSI. General Atomics continued the program, which led to a contract from the Turkish government for a number of
140-611: Is the chief executive officer of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI), the division responsible for manufacturing and selling the Reaper UAV . Dave R. Alexander is the President of GA-ASI. Scott Forney is the President of General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS). On 30 September 2020, General Atomics bought the Dornier 228 production line in Oberpfaffenhofen , along with
160-539: The CIA sent a team equipped with a Gnat 750 to Albania to monitor events in the former Yugoslavia. The operation was not a success. The aircraft suffered from a number of bugs and was limited by bad weather, and the team was finally withdrawn. However, the Gnat 750 continued to be built, leading to an "Improved Gnat" or "I-Gnat" variant, with a turbocharged engine and general overall refinements to increase reliability, reduce maintenance, and enhance capability. The Gnat 750 also led to
180-400: The CIA. The program encountered a number of difficulties, much of them due to bureaucratic factionalism and squabbling. One aircraft crashed during tests when it was hit by a gust of wind, causing it to indicate zero airspeed. The UAV's software decided that meant it had landed and shut down the engine, causing the Gnat to fall to earth. The Gnat 750 effort squeaked through, and in early 1994
200-606: The General Atomics Sciences Education Foundation [ 501(c)(3) ] was established. Four areas of "core competency" at General Atomics were initially selected to form the basis for the development of its education modules and associated workshops. Scientist and teacher teams wrote these modules. Since 2005, the Center for Responsible Politics reported General Atomics had spent over $ 1.5 million per year in lobbying efforts from 2005 to 2011. In April 2002,
220-581: The UAVs in 1993. The Turkish Air Force operates 6 Gnat-750 and 16 I-Gnat ER unmanned aerial vehicles. By this time, the breakup of the old Communist states of Eastern Europe was in full swing, and the United States government wanted to obtain an intelligence asset to help it deal with trouble spots in the region, specifically the former Yugoslavia . A contract was issued to General Atomics for Gnat 750s with minor modifications. The aircraft were to be operated by
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#1732859116049240-790: The Web article Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by Greg Goebel, which exists in the Public Domain. General Atomics General Atomics ( GA ) is an American energy and defense corporation headquartered in San Diego , California, that specializes in research and technology development. This includes physics research in support of nuclear fission and nuclear fusion energy. The company also provides research and manufacturing services for remotely operated surveillance aircraft , including its MQ-1 Predator drones, airborne sensors, and advanced electric, electronic, wireless, and laser technologies. General Atomics
260-556: The business aviation and helicopter MRO operations of RUAG , pending regulatory approval. Since 1992, the General Atomics Science Education Outreach Program, a volunteer effort of GA employees and San Diego science teachers, has worked with Science Coordinators for the San Diego Schools to bring the business and research sides of science into classrooms. In 1995, the program was expanded, and
280-520: The company paid for Letitia White, who was then a top aide to Representative Jerry Lewis , and her husband to travel to Italy. White left Lewis' office nine months later, to become a lobbyist at Copeland Lowery . The next day, she began representing General Atomics. Lewis, her former boss, was at the time chairman of the House Defense Appropriations subcommittee. John Jay Hopkins John Jay Hopkins (October 15, 1893 – May 3, 1957)
300-538: The company's headquarters today. General Atomics's initial projects were the TRIGA nuclear research reactor , which was designed to be safe, and Project Orion . GA helped develop and run the San Diego Supercomputer Center . In 1967, the company was sold to Gulf Oil and renamed "Gulf General Atomic". It was renamed "General Atomic Company" when Royal Dutch Shell Group's Scallop Nuclear Inc. became
320-400: The corporation. In 1993, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems , Inc. (GA-ASI) was created with Neal Blue as Chairman-CEO and Thomas J. Cassidy as president. In 1994, GA-ASI spun off as an affiliate. On March 15, 2010, Rear Adm. Thomas J. Cassidy stepped down as President of GA-ASI's Aircraft Systems Group, staying on as non-executive chairman of the company's management committee. Frank Pace,
340-660: The executive vice president of Aircraft Systems Group, succeeded Cassidy as President of GA-ASI. General Atomics is also developing a Generation IV reactor design, the Gas Turbine Modular Helium Reactor (GT-MHR). In 2010, General Atomics presented a new version of the GT-MHR, the Energy Multiplier Module (EM2), which uses fast neutrons and is a Gas-cooled fast reactor . General Atomics, including its affiliate, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems,
360-440: The number of local employees. The top three contractors were General Atomics, Northrop Grumman, and General Dynamics-NASSCO. In September 2020, a $ 7.4 billion contract for MQ-9 Reaper drones was announced between the U.S. Air Force and General Atomics. The contract calls for the delivery of up to 36 aircraft per year. General Atomics is led by chairman and CEO Neal Blue and his brother, Linden Blue . Linden P. Blue
380-571: Was founded on July 18, 1955, in San Diego, California , by Frederic de Hoffmann with assistance from notable physicists Edward Teller and Freeman Dyson . The company was originally part of the General Atomic division of General Dynamics "for harnessing the power of nuclear technologies". GA's first offices were in the General Dynamics facility on Hancock Street in San Diego. GA also used
400-532: Was founder and president of General Dynamics from 1952 to 1957. Hopkins was born in Santa Ana, California . He was assistant to the Treasury Secretary . In 1937, he joined Electric Boat as a lawyer, and eventually became director. In 1948, as president of Electric Boat, he purchased Canadair and created General Dynamics from that foundation in 1952. Hopkins created the golf World Cup , which began as
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