The Royal Air Force of Great Britain has deployed new Protector RG Mk1 drones with an Outdragon electronic intelligence container capable of tracking mobile phones and routers at the British Akrotiri airbase in Cyprus. The official images, published at the end of June 2026, confirmed for the first time the use of the system in real operations.
Can drones pick up signals from phones and routers?
Outdragon is a suspended electronic intelligence container (SIGINT). Its task is to detect, locate and track people of interest by the electromagnetic radiation of their devices, primarily mobile phones and wireless routers.
According to reports, the system operates in the VHF, UHF and lower microwave bands, which account for the bulk of household and commercial communications. In the pictures, the container is fixed under the right wing of the 54th Squadron drone, on the eighth pylon; it is this suspension point that is indicated in the Air Force loading documentation, which was briefly publicly available, and then was withdrawn.
Why has the system been kept in the shadows for so long?
The UK Ministry of Defense has not officially confirmed the existence of the Outdragon, citing national security concerns. The system was first reported in April 2024 by the British NGO Drone Wars UK, which monitors the operations of British drones. According to her, the container was purchased from General Atomics under the American military supply program Foreign Military Sales in April 2018 for about $ 5 million. In April 2019, another contract was signed for $2.2 million to finalize and integrate the system into the then—existing fleet of MQ-9A Reaper drones.
The Protector replaces the Reaper and flies in the civilian sky.
The Protector RG Mk1 is based on the General Atomics MQ-9B SkyGuardian and entered service with the Royal Air Force in 2025, gradually replacing the MQ-9A Reaper, which the British had been using for almost two decades. Unlike its predecessor, the Protector has a military airworthiness certificate and can fly in general civilian airspace. The device is remotely controlled from the Waddington base, stays in the air for over 30 hours and rises to an altitude of more than 12 kilometers. In total, Britain is purchasing 16 such drones, the first eight have achieved initial combat readiness in 2025. At the front, they are operated by the 31st and 13th squadrons, and the 54th, the reconnaissance Aviation training unit, is responsible for crew training.
Why were the drones deployed to Cyprus?
Akrotiri is a British base in Cyprus and one of the key tracking and intelligence hubs in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Middle East.
Protector drones began operating from Akrotiri in the second half of 2025 and flew missions over the Middle East as part of Operation Shader, the coalition’s campaign against the Islamic State group. In some of the released images, the drones carry not only a reconnaissance container, but also a high-precision Paveway IV bomb. The appearance of Outdragon-powered vehicles enhances the base’s intelligence role and London’s capabilities in the region.
https://lenta.cy/britanija-razmestila-na-kipre-novye-drony-razvedchiki/
