Four-hour flawless
maiden flight of RQ-4A inaugurates production lot
The first air vehicle in a new production lot of upgraded RQ-4A
Global Hawk unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicles made its maiden
flight on July 1. Designated AF-3, the newest Global Hawk flew from
Northrop Grumman Corporation's manufacturing facility in Palmdale,
Calif., to the Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base.
The four-hour flight was flawless, adding to a long list of
accomplishments for the U.S. Air Force's Global Hawk.
Northrop Grumman is the Air Force's Global Hawk prime
contractor.
"The first flight of AF-3 is a significant milestone for Global
Hawk because it will be the first air vehicle from Lot 2 to be
delivered to the Air Force with several combat-proven upgrades
integrated into the system," said Carl O. Johnson, Northrop
Grumman's Global Hawk vice president and integrated product team
leader.
AF-3 is part of Lot 2
of Global Hawk low-rate initial production. Northrop Grumman
expects to deliver the air vehicle to the Air Force later this
month. The company also expects to deliver the first
production launch-recovery element next month.
Production Lot 1, which includes two air vehicles and one
mission-control element, is nearing completion. Northrop
Grumman expects to finish Lot 1 on schedule and cost.
Production Lot 2 is well underway with deliveries scheduled for
both the Air Force and the U.S.
Navy.
The Global Hawk system has recently surpassed the 4,000 flight
hours mark through its deployments to Florida, Australia, Germany,
and three deployments to support the war on terrorism, which
account for 2,000 of those hours.
To date, Northrop
Grumman has received more than $2.3 billion in related design,
development, testing and production contracts. This month,
the company will begin production of the next-generation Global
Hawk air vehicle, designated the RQ-4B, at its Antelope Valley
Manufacturing Center in Palmdale, Calif. The RQ-4B will
accommodate a 50 percent increase in payload weight, and will
feature a larger wingspan (130.9 feet), a longer fuselage (47.6
feet) and a new generator that can deliver 150 percent more
electrical power. Northrop Grumman plans to deliver the first
three RQ-4B air vehicles in 2006 as part of LRIP Lot 3.
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