On 30 December 2012, the Navy issued an urgent order to install RDR-1700 maritime surveillance radars on nine MQ-8Bs. The RDR-1700 is an X-band synthetic aperture radar housed in a modified radome mounted on the helicopter's underside for 360-degree coverage, interfaced with the UAV and its control station. Detailed range is out to , with a max range of . The RDR-1700 can see through clouds and sandstorms and can perform terrain mapping or weather detection, and track 20 air or surface targets, determining a target's range, bearing, and velocity.Robochoppers Turned Into Maritime Recon Aircraft - Strategypage.com, January 18, 2013Navy issues hurry-up order to equip Fire Scout UAS with maritime surveillance radar - sUASNews.com, December 30, 2012 In January 2013, the Navy awarded a $33 million contract to Telephonics for the RDR-1700B+ radar, designated AN/ZPY-4(V)1.Surveillance Radar Selected for Unmanned MQ-8B Fire Scouts - Ainonline.com, 25 January 2013 The radar gives a beyond the horizon broad area search and track capability to track up to 200 targets and operates in surface search, terrain mapping, emergency beacon detection, and weather avoidance modes, supplementing the FLIR Systems Brite Star II electro-optical/infrared payload. It was first demonstrated on an MQ-8B on 7 May 2014.Northrop demonstrates broad area search radar on MQ-8B - Flightglobal.com, 19 June 2014
