The U.S. Navy has confirmed the Boeing-owned MQ-25A Stingray T1 demonstrator is aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68) during Fleet Exercise 250 (FLEETEX 250) in the Atlantic Ocean, as part of a display marking the United States’ 250th anniversary.
“We do indeed have a Boeing-owned T-1 prototype currently onboard,” a Navy spokesperson said.
Boeing stated on X that the T1 was placed aboard “to honor the United States’ 250th anniversary,” offering “a glimpse of the Navy’s carrier air wing of the future.” The aircraft carries special “250” markings on both fuselage sides and a “Boeing Backs America” label.
Celebrating America 250 🇺🇸
To honor the United States’ 250th anniversary, the MQ-25A T1 prototype is aboard the USS Nimitz, offering a glimpse of the Navy’s carrier air wing of the future. The special “Boeing Backs America” mark highlights our support for U.S. aviation. pic.twitter.com/hbFYXtCxfK
— Boeing Defense (@BoeingDefense) June 29, 2026
The T1 was transported aboard and lashed to the flight deck alongside four F/A-18E Super Hornets and two C-2A Greyhounds. It was not fitted with its Cobham Aerial Refueling Store (ARS) pod, used for aerial refueling operations, and played no operational role in the exercise. The T1 has been flying since 2019 but has never taken off from or landed on a carrier.
The display may also be Nimitz’s only encounter with the Stingray program.
The Navy has extended the carrier’s service life to March 2027, per Breaking Defense, but Nimitz is not among the ships receiving the drone control systems required to operate production MQ-25As.
USS George H.W. Bush, USS Carl Vinson, USS Theodore Roosevelt, and USS Ronald Reagan are the first four carriers earmarked for that equipment.
The MQ-25A program reached Milestone C on May 19, 2026, the Pentagon’s authorization to begin Low-Rate Initial Production (LRIP), when acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao announced the decision at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing. An LRIP Lot 1 contract covering three aircraft is expected this summer.
The Navy plans to acquire 76 MQ-25As, targeting initial operational capability (IOC) in Fiscal Year 2029 following recent budget delays.
