MARINE CORPS AIR STATION CHERRY POINT, N.C. –
Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Training Squadron (VMUT) 2, Marine Aircraft Group 14, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, graduated its first class of MQ-9A Reaper student pilots and sensor operators Nov. 7, 2025, marking the Marine Corps’ first organically trained MQ-9A aircrew.
Since 2018, Marine Corps MQ-9A training has been conducted through an Air Force-led Inter-service Training Review Organization agreement. This year, the Marine Corps established its own training pipeline through the Air Vehicle Aircrew program at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida, and VMUT-2 at Cherry Point.
“This is a significant day for the Marine Corps’ MQ-9 community,” said Maj. David Hughes, VMUT-2 executive officer. “[The students’] months of hard work and dedication has culminated in them being officially welcomed into the Marine Corps’ MQ-9A community.”
The Marine Initial Qualification Training course, the Corps’ only Group 5 MQ-9A graduate-level program for pilots and sensor operators, provides six months of instruction led by Marine and contract instructors experienced in fielding the Reaper system.
The MQ-9A, alongside its pilots, sensor operators and maintainers, form the crux of the Marine Corps’ Marine Air-Ground Task Force Unmanned Aerial System Expeditionary (MUX) Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) program, delivering surveillance and aerial reconnaissance capabilities to the MAGTF. VMUT-2 trains aircrew for assignment to the Fleet Marine Force at Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron (VMU) 1 at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, and VMU-3 at Marine Corps Base Hawaii.
The graduation marks a major milestone in the growth of the Marine Corps’ MQ-9A Reaper community and the MUX MALE program. As the IQT course expands in fiscal year 2026, 2nd MAW will also support the standup of Unmanned Aerial System Maintenance Squadron 1, co-located with VMUT-2 at Cherry Point.
Written by 1st Lt. John Graham with the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing. 