#global hawk

[nocternalrandomness]

A Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk UAS seen in 2012 at NASA 's Armstrong Flight Research Center

[usafphantom2]

In the next few hours history will be made as a USAF RQ-4 Global Hawk Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) lands at RAF Fairford. Over two years in the planning and heralding a new era of drone operations from Gloucestershire base 👀 #AvGeek #RadioGeek #MilMonWorld l

@MilMonWorld via X

[kgyst]

Minket bezzeg elkerülnek!

via Fb

[general-cybernetics]

[nicholassabalos]

It’s a drone!

GEELONG, Australia (March 3, 2019) -- A United States Air Force RQ-4 Global Hawk assigned to Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, lands at the Avalon International Airport in Geelong, Victoria, Australia.

(What is this thing doing near Melbourne, Australia? This Global Hawk made a somewhat surprising visit to the biennial Australian International Airshow....held March 1-3, 2019....and one of the world’s premiere military aviation public events.)

The Global Hawk is a high-altitude, long-endurance, remotely-piloted aircraft with an integrated sensor suite that provides global all-weather, day or night intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities. (It can find most anything, anywhere, anytime!)

The 3500-mile (5600-km) flight for this special Global Hawk mission.

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When I first saw the photo above, I had to do a double-take before I realized that it was an UNmanned (drone) aircraft. This ground-level perspective makes the drone look like a manned aircraft (albeit a rather hideous-looking one).

Just a few stats on this drone. (Yeah, it’s a BIG machine!):

                  Wingspan: 131 feet (40 meters)                   Length: 48 feet (15 meters)                   Height: 15 feet (4.5 meters)                   Weight: 15,000 pounds (7.5 tons / 6,800 kilograms)

Global Hawk looks like it’s flying with its eyes closed. Of course, the exact opposite is the reality for this exceptional surveillance craft.

[photos-mdx]

RQ-4 Global Hawk, 12th Reconnaissance Squadron

[editionsmatiere-blog]

Drone survival guide, Ruben Pater, 2013

[photoyage]

An RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft like the one shown is currently flying non-military mapping missions over South, Central America and the Caribbean at the request of partner nations in the region. (U.S. Air Force photo/Bobbi Zapka)