The Boeing-Insitu ScanEagle unmanned aircraft system (UAS) completed its 1,500th shipboard sortie in service with the U.S. Navy, Boeing announced in January.

The long-endurance, fully autonomous aircraft carries inertially stabilized electro-optical and infrared cameras enabling the operator to track both stationary and moving targets. Capable of flying above 16,000 feet and loitering over the battlefield for more than 24 hours, ScanEagle has provided persistent, low-altitude intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) to the Navy since July 2005.

Boeing teamed with Insitu to develop ScanEagle, based on Insitu’s Seascan robotic aircraft. In September 2008, Boeing acquired Insitu.