Sierra Nevada Corporation announced that two contractor-operated ATHENA-S aircraft have completed testing and are now operational in support of the U.S. Army Aerial-ISR mission.
Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) has announced on April 15, 2026, that both contractor and government testing of Army Theater-level ISR-Signals ISR (ATHENA-S) aircraft was completed. The aircraft are now ready for Contractor Operated (COCO) service in support of the US Army’s Airborne Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (A-ISR) mission.
The ATHENA-S milestone validates the design, mission systems integration and operational performance of the Bombardier Global 6500 Rapid Configurable to Any Mission-X (RAPCON-X) aircraft, SNC said in a news release. ATHENA-S aircraft are among the war-ready aircraft to replace the Army’s legacy turboprop ISR and SIGINT fleet.
In addition to ATHENA-S, there are also ATHENA-R (Radar), Airborne Reconnaissance and Targeting Multi-Mission System (ARTEMIS) and Airborne Reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare System (ARES). Like ATHENA, ARTEMIS and ARES are also part of COCO services.
We are delighted to announce that comprehensive contractor and government testing for our RAPCON-X aircraft has been successfully completed as part of the US Army’s ATHENA project! https://t.co/eMgApUi4GR pic.twitter.com/6pblvsvgGV
— Sierra Nevada Corporation (@SierraNevCorp) April 15, 2026
These programs are included within the broader High Precision Exploitation and Detection System (HADES), allowing technologies to be tested and reporting requirements for the effort. In January 22, 2026The Army also issued a Request for Information (RFI) for 11 Bombardier Global 6500 commercial aircraft destined for the HADES project, for a final Acquisition Objective (AO) of 14 aircraft.
ATHENA-S operational
The SNC press release quoted the director of strategy and transformation within the Army’s G-2, Andrew Evans, as saying that the ATHENA flying platform “enables the accelerated delivery of timely, actionable intelligence to commanders.” He further added that “putting advanced A-ISR capabilities in the hands of warfighters strengthens the Army’s ability to sense, understand and respond in contested environments, preserving decision advantage for the force.”
The company highlighted the Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning (AI/ML)-enabled “processing, exploitation and dissemination tools” in ATHENA-S. This is in harmony with the emerging ‘cognitive electronic warfare’ technological concept that provides for automated scanning, identification and jamming/spoofing of hostile radio/radar emissions, reducing operator and pilot workload.
… Europe and the other two to South Korea, but this seems to have changed in recent months.
2/2
SNC press release: https://t.co/gsLObs1ENL
More about ATHENA aircraft: https://t.co/bm1zA2d1Ob
Photo above: https://t.co/qSxsXsIBBq
h/t @airsuperiorx: https://t.co/PqISe4PzrA
– War bizjets (@bizjetsofwar) April 15, 2026
SNC explained that the ATHENA-S aircraft completed mission systems testing and integration at its facility in Hagerstown, Maryland. This was followed by a “comprehensive series of contractor and government test events” that “validated the performance of the aircraft system of systems, confirming that the integrated platform meets operational requirements for ISR collection and mission processing.”
“ATHENA demonstrates the strength of SNC’s integration expertise and our ability to rapidly deliver operational capability to the warfighter,” said Tim Owings, SNC executive vice president. “By leveraging proven commercial platforms and integrating advanced mission systems, we are accelerating the deployment of critical ISR capabilities while informing the future architecture of the Army’s deep sensor fleet.”
US Army video on the integration of the High Accuracy Exploitation and Detection System (HADES) project.
HADES is the US Army’s future HALE platform for airborne ISR, SIGINT, ELINT, COMINT and deep detection missions at altitudes up to 70 kft using Bombardier Global 6500 aircraft. pic.twitter.com/TjejvWYnLJ— Mehdi H. (@mhmiranusa) April 16, 2026
ATHENA-S plane in the Philippines
A few days earlier, the two aircraft were deployed to Cebu, Philippines. Flight tracking account ‘Manila_Alert’ reported on April 12, 2026 that one of the aircraft, N650RX, flying under the callsign ‘LATTE18’, was over the South China Sea (SCS) a few hundred kilometers northeast of Cebu. It would join its other ATHENA-S sister aircraft, the N650SN, which had already been on site since early April.
LATTE18 (ATHENA-S) heads to Cebu, Philippines, with stops in Honolulu and Guam to rejoin her sister, N650SN. I wonder why both ATHENA-S aircraft are deployed in Cebu instead of Japan or South Korea.
LATTE18, N650RX – #A88E47
(credits to https://t.co/j3Axp68Q63) pic.twitter.com/ORqxHw4n5o
— Manila_Alert (@Manila_Alert1) April 12, 2026
In fact, ‘Manila Alert’ had tracked the other ATHENA-S aircraft, N650SN, which was heading to the Philippines as early as April 1, flying under the callsign ‘LATTE92’. Data about ADS-B exchange showed the activity of N650SN on April 10 at Mactan-Cebu International Airport in the Philippines, from where it took off at 11:54 pm and landed back the next morning at 6:19 am.
Both planes are believed to have stopped in Honolulu, home of Joint Base Pearl-Habor Hickam (JBPHH), and Andersen Air Force Base in Guam to refuel. The plane then made the final leg from Guam to the Philippines.
ATHENA-R and ATHENA-S within the HADES program
The Army’s ISR-Radar (ATHENA-R) and ATHENA-S (Signal Intelligence) reaction platforms are part of the Army’s readiness for the High Precision Detection and Exploitation System (HADES). The program, which is part of the Multi-Domain Detection System (MDSS) program, has been taking shape since 2020.
For the HADES project, the Army is testing four different contracted company-owned (COCO) demonstration aircraft, which provide ISR, targeting, and ELINT/SIGINT (electronic/signals intelligence) capabilities. These preparatory programs are “bridge strategies,” as the Army had said, that will validate technologies, meet interim operational needs, and also inform performance parameters for the HADES project.
MDSS and HADES are intended to replace the four-decade legacy turboprop aircraft fleet of RC-12X Guardrail, MC-12S EMARSS and EO-5C ARL-M, of which the Army completed divestment in December 2025. The other two roles are the Airborne Reconnaissance and Targeting Multi-Mission System (ARTEMIS) and the Airborne Reconnaissance and Electronic Warfare System (ARES).
MDSS product manager Eric Hughes had previously said they would help evaluate “how sensors on demonstration aircraft perform at the altitudes, speeds and ranges that HADES is expected to perform.” ARTEMIS, based on the Challenger 650 business jet, has been operational since 2020, with deployments in both the Indo-Pacific and Europe. The Bombardier Global 6500-based ARES will also be deployed to the Indo-Pacific in 2022.
In 2023, the US Army selected L3Harris and MAG Aerospace for two ATHENA-R aircraft, and SNC for an equal number of ATHENA-S aircraft. Then, in February 2025, the Army deployed the ATHENA-R to South Korea for a four-month operational evaluation of the aircraft’s readiness.
In May 2025, SNC announced the successful completion of the initial flight performance qualification and handling test of the Bombardier Global 6500 commercial aircraft on the RAPCON-X (Rapidly Configurable to Any Mission-X) airframe for the ATHENA-S.
Earlier today, the ATHENA aircraft conducted approach and landing training at Kunsan Air Base. The first ISR mission is expected later this week.
SCRUM06 // N291SR // #A2FAD1 pic.twitter.com/rkDQPj8bGA
– War bizjets (@bizjetsofwar) February 18, 2025
January 2026 RFI
The January 22, 2026 Request for Information (RFI), updated over the following month before finally being deactivated on March 4, sought 11 Global 6500s as government-operated (GOGO) airframes. Curiously, Rip Defense had reported in May 2025 that the Army had halved its future HADES fleet from 12 to six aircraft.
The RFI requires that the aircraft be able to operate between altitudes of 41,000 and 51,000 feet, and must maintain a ceiling of 41,000 feet while carrying 6,500 pounds of the ISR and SIGINT “Mission Equipment Package (MEP)” payload in question.
The aircraft should also be able to survive 12 hours without refueling while carrying a minimum payload of 14,000 pounds. The structural requirements stipulate that composite materials must not be used for the aircraft fuselage, tail cones, pylons, fairings and radome.
