The Danish Air Force has formed 729 Squadron as part of its ongoing efforts to reinforce national surveillance and monitoring capabilities, particularly in the Arctic, North Atlantic, and Baltic Sea regions.
Based at Aalborg Air Base under the Air Transport Wing, 729 Squadron marks a renewed investment by Danish Defence in long-range unmanned aerial systems.
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The squadron was formally established on 16 February, during a ceremony at the air base.
“It is Denmark’s ambition to expand the monitoring and surveillance in the Arctic and Greenland and 729 Squadron and the new long-range aircraft will contribute to that ambition,” the Danish defence ministry said in a statement.
The unit will operate four MQ-9B Sea Guardian remotely piloted aircraft, which Denmark agreed to purchase in July of last year through a collaboration with the Nato Support and Procurement Agency.
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc (GA-ASI) will manufacture the aircraft, and deliveries are expected to begin from 2028.
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By GlobalDataThe MQ-9B Sea Guardian aircraft are intended to expand Denmark’s intelligence gathering and surveillance activities across strategic maritime and polar areas.
In addition to national security roles, the platform has been flagged for possible use in environmental monitoring and search and rescue operations.
A previous iteration of 729 Squadron existed from 1955 to 1993, serving as a photo reconnaissance unit in the Danish Air Force and carrying out significant tasks, including intelligence contributions during the Cuban Missile Crisis.
The ministry stated: “The new Squadron 729 will also contribute with photo reconnaissance, but the capacity will also be equipped with a number of other new modern sensors to support the surveillance and intelligence task.”
