Maidenhead drones perform 'milestone' Royal Navy flight in future of sea warfare

A specialist airborne drone manufactured in Maidenhead has performed a ‘milestone’ flight for the Royal Navy as part of a deployment in the Pacific Ocean.

The T-150 quadcopter, built by White Waltham Airfield-based Malloy Aeronautics, completed a more than one-mile sortie to transport mission-critical supplies between two ships.

British warships are on an eight-month deployment in the Indo-Pacific region as part of the UK Carrier Strike Group, which sees the Maidenhead drones put through their paces alongside fighter jets and helicopters.

Captain Colin McGannity, the strike force’s air group commander said: “This milestone in the Malloy trials is a step toward the vision of a fully integrated hybrid carrier air wing.

“By taking some of the logistics burden, Malloy will allow our naval helicopters to concentrate on their core outputs, while delivering, rapid, more efficient resupply across the whole strike group.”

The drones are being piloted by the Royal Navy's 700X squadron (image: Crown Copyright). 

Malloy’s T-150 drone, which can hold an up to 11 stone payload, carried supplies from the group’s flagship aircraft carrier HMS Prince of Wales to destroyer HMS Dauntless – and flew autonomously for much of that journey.

The Advertiser previously reported how the company had a nine-strong detachment of its heavy-lifting drones on trial with the carrier strike group’s hybrid air wing.

Hybrid air wings - a combined formation of new F-35 fighter jets, long-range weapons and drones - are a key part of the Royal Navy’s plans for future sea and airborne combat.

It is hoped that using drones, also known as UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles], will reduce costly helicopter flights and free up time for them to complete other missions.

Captain McGannity said: “The really exciting bit is that we then plan to incorporate these lessons to be able to use UAVs for many other roles, including options for warfighting.”

Malloy was purchased by British defence company BAE Systems in 2024, and was awarded part of a £4.5billion Ministry of Defence (MOD) contract in 2023.

Lieutenant Matt Parfitt, commander of the navy’s Malloy drone squadron, said: “This is a key milestone for the trial, achieved by all the hard work that everyone has put in.

“I’m proud to have achieved this first for the Royal Navy and excited to progress further over the duration of the deployment.”

Operation Highmast, the name of the UK Carrier Strike Group’s Indo-Pacific mission, has seen more than 20 hours of sorties and 150 deck landings performed by Malloy drones.

A Royal Navy statement said the ‘latest phase’ of its drone trials took place between HMS Prince of Wales and its escort ships during port visits in Japan.

Russia’s war in Ukraine has seen militaries across the world look to learn lessons from the conflict’s widespread use of drones.

UK Armed Forces minister Luke Pollard said: “Embracing autonomy is pivotal to the way we will operate in the future, and this achievement stands as a powerful example of our armed forces working seamlessly alongside British industry to deliver cutting-edge innovation and capability at sea.”