U.S. Navy Awards Boeing $562 Million First Production Contract for MQ-25A Stingray

The U.S. Navy has awarded Boeing the first production contract for the MQ-25A Stingray, a $562 million deal that moves the carrier-based unmanned tanker from development into procurement.

Announced Sept. 14, the fixed-price incentive contract covers three MQ-25A aircraft in Low-Rate Initial Production, or LRIP, Lot 1. It is the program’s first production award, a milestone that formally shifts the aircraft from years of design and testing toward fielding with the fleet.

The MQ-25A is designed as a carrier-based unmanned aerial refueling aircraft, with a secondary intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance role. Its main job is to refuel other aircraft from aircraft carriers, a mission the Navy says will free F/A-18E/F Super Hornets from tanker duty so those fighters can focus on strike and other combat tasks, extending the reach of the carrier air wing.

In addition to the three Lot 1 aircraft, the contract includes funding for the advanced acquisition of long-lead components for three Lot 2 aircraft. The Navy said initial deliveries from Lot 1 are expected to begin in 2029. “Awarding this first LRIP contract marks a pivotal transition from development to operational reality and is a testament to the focused effort of our joint government and industry teams,” Capt. Daniel Fucito, the Navy’s Unmanned Carrier Aviation program manager, said in the service’s Sept. 14 announcement. The contracting office is the Portfolio Acquisition Executive Aviation at Patuxent River, Maryland.

The award follows a key Pentagon acquisition decision earlier this year. On May 19, 2026, the Navy said the MQ-25A received Milestone C approval, allowing the program to enter the Production and Deployment, or LRIP, phase. Before that, Boeing and the Navy said a production-representative MQ-25A completed its first test flight on April 25, 2026. Boeing said the aircraft autonomously taxied, took off, flew a mission plan and landed.

The program has been in development for years. Boeing won the engineering and manufacturing development contract in 2018 for the initial aircraft, and the Navy now says the MQ-25A program of record totals 76 air vehicles, including development and test aircraft. The service also said seven test aircraft are in production at Boeing facilities in St. Louis and Mascoutah, Illinois.

The move into LRIP is notable not only because it starts procurement, but because it comes after repeated schedule pressure. Pentagon and congressional reporting in 2026 indicated schedule slips that pushed expected initial operational capability to around 2029. Oversight bodies including the Government Accountability Office and the Defense Department inspector general have also warned about risks tied to beginning production before all testing is complete.

Boeing said the Lot 1 award brings the total number of MQ-25A aircraft under U.S. Navy contract to 14.