In the year 2000, General Atomics developed for the Department of Defense, based on the MQ-1 Predator, an UAV which should be a larger and more powerful Hunter-killer UAV, to act as a weapon against terrorism. The first flight of the prototype was on 2nd February 2001. It is powered by a 670 kW Turboprop engine. With a weight of 4760 kg, it is four times heavier than the MQ-1 and has a ten times higher payload. External droptanks, Air-to-Ground missiles and precision bombs can be monted on four external pylons. For reconnaissance rules and target detection it is equipped with a radar and Infra-red sensors.