British Drone Spotted Carrying Covert Spy Pod

British drone spotted carrying covert spy pod

A Royal Air Force Protector RG Mk1 has been photographed at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus carrying what appears to be the so-called Outdragon signals intelligence pod. The images, first reported by The Aviationist, show one of 54 Squadron’s Protector aircraft on the taxiway at the Cyprus base with a podded payload mounted on the starboard wing’s number 8 hardpoint. The location and configuration of the pod align with previously published details that h…

New Images Show RAF Protector RG1 Operating from Akrotiri with 'Outdragon' SIGINT Pod

The UK Ministry of Defence has published new photos of the first deployments of the MQ-9B Protector RG1 to RAF Akrotiri on Cyprus, including some of the best official views of what is believed to be the ‘Outdragon’ SIGINT pod. As we covered extensively on The Aviationist, the Royal Air Force’s new fleet of MQ-9B Protector RG1 aircraft – which replaced the MQ-9A Reaper – began operating from RAF Akrotiri during the second half of 2025. After a se…