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From: Miloch <Miloch_member@newsguy.com>
Newsgroups: alt.binaries.pictures.aviation
Subject: Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk
Date: 21 Jun 2019 06:52:28 -0700
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_RQ-4_Global_Hawk
The Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk is an unmanned (UAV) surveillance
aircraft. It was initially designed by Ryan Aeronautical (now part of Northrop
Grumman), and known as Tier II+ during development. The Global Hawk performs
duties similar to that of the Lockheed U-2. The RQ-4 provides a broad overview
and systematic surveillance using high-resolution synthetic aperture radar (SAR)
and long-range electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors with long loiter times
over target areas. It can survey as much as 40,000 square miles (100,000 km2) of
terrain a day, an area the size of South Korea or Iceland.
The Global Hawk is operated by the United States Air Force (USAF). It is used as
a High-Altitude Long Endurance platform covering the spectrum of intelligence
collection capability to support forces in worldwide military operations.
According to the USAF, the superior surveillance capabilities of the aircraft
allow more precise weapons targeting and better protection of friendly forces.
Cost overruns led to the original plan to acquire 63 aircraft being cut to 45,
and to a 2013 proposal to mothball the 21 Block 30 signals intelligence
variants. Each aircraft was to cost US$60.9 million in 2001, but this had risen
to $222.7 million per aircraft (including development costs) by 2013. The U.S.
Navy has developed the Global Hawk into the MQ-4C Triton maritime surveillance
platform.
In the 1990s, the Air Force had developing unmanned aerial intelligence
platforms. One of them was the stealthy RQ-3 Dark Star, another one was the
Global Hawk. Due to budget cuts, only one of the programs could survive. It was
decided to proceed with the Global Hawk because it had superior range compared
to the Dark Star.
The Global Hawk took its first flight on 28 February 1998. The first seven
aircraft were built under the Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD)
program, sponsored by DARPA, in order to evaluate the design and demonstrate its
capabilities. Demand for the RQ-4's abilities was high in the Middle East; thus,
the prototype aircraft were actively operated by the USAF in the War in
Afghanistan. In an unusual move, the aircraft entered initial low-rate
production while still in engineering and manufacturing development. Nine
production Block 10 aircraft, sometimes referred to as RQ-4A, were produced; of
these, two were sold to the US Navy and an additional two were deployed to Iraq
to support operations there.
The final Block 10 aircraft was delivered on 26 June 2006.
In order to increase the aircraft's capabilities, the airframe was redesigned,
with the nose section and wings being stretched. The modified aircraft,
designated RQ-4B Block 20, can carry up to 3,000 lb (1,360 kg) of internal
payload. These changes were introduced with the first Block 20 aircraft, the
17th Global Hawk produced, which was rolled out in a ceremony on 25 August 2006.
First flight of the Block 20 from the USAF Plant 42 in Palmdale, California to
Edwards Air Force Base took place on 1 March 2007. Developmental testing of
Block 20 took place in 2008.
Role
Surveillance UAV
National origin
United States
Manufacturer
Northrop Grumman
First flight
28 February 1998
Status
In service
Primary users
United States Air Force
NASA
NATO
Produced
Number built
42 RQ-4Bs as of FY2013
Program cost
US$10 billion (USAF cost through FY2014)
Unit cost
US$131.4M (FY13)
US$222.7M (with R&D)
Developed into
Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton
Following the September 11th attacks, the normal acquisition process was
bypassed almost immediately and early developmental Global Hawk models were
employed in overseas contingency operations beginning in November 2001. Global
Hawk ATCD prototypes were used in the War in Afghanistan and in the Iraq War.
Since April 2010, they fly the Northern Route, from Beale Air Force Base over
Canada to South-East Asia and back, reducing flight time and improving
maintenance. While their data-collection capabilities have been praised, the
program lost three prototype aircraft to accidents, more than one quarter of the
aircraft used in the wars. The crashes were reported to be due to "technical
failures or poor maintenance", with a failure rate per hour flown over 100 times
higher than the F-16 fighter. Northrop Grumman stated that it was unfair to
compare the failure rates of a mature design to that of a prototype aircraft. In
June 2012, a media report described the Global Hawk, the MQ-1 Predator and the
MQ-9 Reapers "... the most accident-prone aircraft in the Air Force fleet." On
11 February 2010, the Global Hawks deployed in the Central Command AOR accrued
30,000 combat hours and 1,500 plus sorties.
In planning for the FY 2015 budget, the U-2 was to be retired in favor of the
RQ-4, made possible by reductions of RQ-4 operating costs and would be the first
time an unmanned aircraft would completely replace a manned aircraft. The Block
40 Global Hawk may have to be retired in FY 2016 if sequestration is not
repealed. The U-2 will continue to fly through 2018 without replacement.
In May 2014, a U.S. Global Hawk conducted a surveillance mission over Nigeria as
part of the search for the kidnapped Nigerian schoolgirls. The Global Hawk
joined MC-12 manned aircraft in the search.
The Global Hawk has been used in Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR) against the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).
The aircraft provide real-time imagery and signals intelligence to identify
friendly and enemy forces, do long-term target development, and track enemy
equipment movement, enabling combatant commanders to act on better information
and make key decisions. The BACN version allows ground troops to contact
aircraft when they are in need of assistance, such as close air support. On 11
November 2015, an EQ-4 became the first Global Hawk aircraft to reach flying 500
sorties. All three EQ-4s in operation are supporting OIR. Upon landing,
maintainers can complete ground maintenance and make the aircraft mission ready
again within five hours; missions can last up to 30 hours, with each aircraft
getting a "day off" in between combat flights.
On 1 April 2017, an EQ-4 completed 1,000 continuous sorties, without incurring a
single maintenance cancellation, while supporting OIR.
On 4 April 2016, it was reported that a USAF Global Hawk had completed its third
flight over Germany under an initiative (the European Reassurance Initiative) to
reassure NATO members concerned over Russian involvement in the conflict in
Ukraine. Germany opened its airspace for up to five Global Hawk flights a month
until the middle of October 2016. The Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily-based
Global Hawk flies over Italian and French airspace and an air corridor through
Germany with its sensors switched off on its way to its area of operations over
the Baltic Sea.
In 2017, the USAF decided to begin the process of training enlisted Airmen to
fly the RQ-4 due to a shortage of pilots and an increased demand for the Global
Hawks capabilities. The RQ-4 is currently the only aircraft enlisted pilots are
flying.
On 16 August 2018, a Global Hawk, assigned to 12th Reconnaissance Squadron, took
off from Beale AFB, California, and landed at Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska for
simulated combat training exercise.
In December 2007, two Global Hawks were transferred from the USAF to NASA's
Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards AFB.
Initial research activities beginning in the second quarter of 2009 supported
NASA's high-altitude, long-duration Earth science missions. The two Global Hawks
were the first and sixth aircraft built under the original DARPA Advanced
Concept Technology Demonstration program, and were made available to NASA when
the Air Force had no further need for them. Northrop Grumman is an operational
partner with NASA and will use the aircraft to demonstrate new technologies and
to develop new markets for the aircraft, including possible civilian uses.
According to an article in the March 2010 issue of Scientific American (p.
25-27), NASA's Global Hawks were expected to begin scientific missions that
month, and had been undergoing tests in late 2009. Initial science applications
included measurements of the ozone layer and cross-Pacific transport of air
pollutants and aerosols; the author of the Scientific American piece speculates
that it could be used for Antarctic exploration while being based in Chile. In
Mission (Genesis and Rapid Intensification Program). Its long-term on station
capabilities and long range made it a suitable aircraft for monitoring the
development of Atlantic basin Hurricanes. It was modified to equip weather
sensors including Ku-band radar, lightning sensors and dropsondes. It
successfully flew into Hurricane Earl off the United States East Coast on 2
September 2010.
Specifications (RQ-4B Block 30/40)
General characteristics
Crew: 0 onboard (3 remote: Launch and Recovery Element (LRE) pilot; Mission
Control Element (MCE) pilot and sensor operator)
Length: 47.6 ft (14.5 m)
Wingspan: 130.9 ft (39.9 m)
Height: 15.3 ft (4.7 m)
Empty weight: 14,950 lb (6,781 kg)
Gross weight: 32,250 lb (14,628 kg)
thrust
Performance
Maximum speed: 391 mph (629 km/h; 340 kn)
Cruise speed: 357 mph (575 km/h; 310 kn)
Range: 14,154 mi (12,299 nmi; 22,779 km)
Endurance: 32+ hours
Service ceiling: 60,000 ft (18,000 m)
*
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