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EDWARDS AFB - A Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle known as N-1 took off from Edwards' main runway Monday evening on a one-way mission to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. The N-1, an RQ-4A Global Hawk - one of two acquired by the U.S. Navy through the Global Hawk Maritime Demonstration Program - is the first of its kind delivered to the Navy and is being prepared for participation in the Navy's Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006. The delivery was enabled by the installation of a launch and recovery element at Patuxent River that allows the Navy to begin...

EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., March 30, 2006 – An RQ-4A Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle known as N-1 took off from the main runway at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., March 27, on a one-way mission to Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md. The N-1, one of two acquired by the U.S. Navy through the Global Hawk Maritime Demonstration Program, is the first of its kind delivered to the Navy, and is being prepared for participation in the Navy's Joint Expeditionary Force Experiment 2006. "The successful delivery of N-1 to Patuxent River marks a major milestone in the joint...

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (CP) - Canada's air force will cross a technological threshhold this month with the establishment in Afghanistan of its first organized flight of pilotless aircraft. An entire flight of Sperwer tactical uninhabited aerial vehicles will soon be fully operational for reconnaissance missions over the windswept desert and craggy mountains passes in the vicinity of Kandahar. A few of the remote-controlled aircraft are already deployed, but more are on the way. Using real-time video and a host of infrared and other specialized sensors, the drones are sent aloft to monitor the surrounding countryside and to track down insurgents, hopefully...

/20/2006 - WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio (AFPN) -- After supporting the global war on terror for three years, Global Hawk Unmanned Aerial Vehicle No. 3 (UAV-3) received its official homecoming Feb. 20 when its wheels touched down at 11:30 a.m. Pacific Time at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. During its overseas deployment, UAV-3 logged more than 4,800 flight hours supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and the Combined Task Force --Horn of Africa. On hand at the homecoming event were Maj. Gen. Curtis Bedke, commander, Air Force Flight Test Center; Randy Brown, director, Global Hawk Systems Group; Gary...

2/14/2006 - SOUTHWEST ASIA (AFPN) -- A high-flying prototype “Airman” is heading home after being deployed more than four years and flying 4,245 hours supporting Operation Iraqi Freedom, Operation Enduring Freedom and the Combined Task Force-Horn of Africa. Global Hawk Air Vehicle No. 3 began its journey back home at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., Feb. 10, and is expected to land there Feb. 16. This unmanned aerial vehicle, AV-3, first deployed as a prototype during the build-up for Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2002. It returned to Edwards for a couple of months and then was recalled by U.S. Central...

PALMDALE - A bigger and better version of the unmanned Global Hawk reconnaissance aircraft is preparing to leave the nest at Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Palmdale assembly facility. This second production version of Global Hawk, dubbed the RQ-4B, is significantly larger and able to carry 50% more payload than its predecessor, the RQ-4A. The RQ-4B is basically a redesigned Global Hawk, said Mike McCormack, production manager. Global Hawk is a high-altitude, long-endurance, unmanned aerial reconnaissance system designed to provide military field commanders with high-resolution, nearly real time imagery of large areas. It is designed to fly at more than 60,000 feet...

PALMDALE - Production will be ramping up at Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Palmdale manufacturing facility as the result of a $272 million contract for four additional Global Hawk unmanned reconnaissance aircraft and their associated ground systems. The Air Force contract is for the new "B" model of Global Hawk, a larger version capable of carrying greater payloads and more sensor equipment than the first version, Northrop Grumman spokeswoman Revelle Anderson said. Global Hawk is a high-altitude, long-endurance, unmanned aerial reconnaissance system designed to provide military field commanders with high-resolution, near-real-time imagery of large geographic areas. It is designed to fly to...

EDWARDS AFB - After taking a year off, the Edwards Air Force Base Open House and Air Show returns with a bang - and a boom and a roar - on Oct. 22 and 23. The free event will feature seldom-seen aircraft in the air and on the ground as the base pulls out all the stops to showcase military and civilian aviation. "It's looking real good," said Edwards spokesman John Haire of the tentative show lineup, expected to feature more flying than in recent years. Making its aerial debut at Edwards will be the unmanned Predator, used in combat...

WASHINGTON - Business is soaring for the defense companies that keep the Valley's economy aloft. But serious challenges on the horizon - among them potential budget cuts and California's anti-business climate - could send The Boeing Co., Northrop Grumman Corp. and Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. into a tailspin, the firms report. Members of the Antelope Valley Board of Trade, or AVBOT, visited the Washington offices of the big three contractors Monday as part of the regional economic organization's annual lobbying visit to the nation's capital. AVBOT reps received updates on the aerospace companies' ongoing work at Palmdale's Air Force Plant...

I could use some intel from you guys. Last week, I broke the story on Clear Channel stations from coast to coast of how the US is conducting clandestine reconnaissance missions via Global Hawk in Iran. The Hawks are searching for intel on Iran's nuke program. One went down near Arak, where Iran has their heavy-water facility. I also reported that the rumors of US manned reconnaissance flights over Iran were in fact decoy flights to draw Iran's attention away from the GH missions. I just heard on MSNBC that Sy Hirsch will have an article in next week's "New...

At the Air Force Association meeting in Washington last week, General John Jumper, the USAF Chief of Staff; Peter Teets, the DoD Space czar; and General Lance Lord, head of Air Force Space Command, all referred to something called “Near Space” which was defined as being between 20 and 300 kilometers altitude. The seam between what had traditionally been regarded as “high altitude” and low Earth orbit (LEO) is of interest to the military for several reasons. Today, this is mostly because they believe that inflatable airships operating there can fulfill many of the missions now assigned to satellites or...

PALMDALE - The first aircraft in a new production lot of upgraded Global Hawk unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicles made its maiden flight July 1 from Northrop Grumman Corp.'s facility 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 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...

Despite pressure exerted by the USAF to choose Northrop Grumman’s Global Hawk UAV as its Broad Area Maritime Surveillance aircraft, the USN has announced that it will proceed with its own acquisition plan. Claiming its was motivated by a desire to increase the cost effectiveness of the Global Hawk Program through lower prices on hardware, savings in logistics support, common training, shared infrastructure, and enhanced jointness, the Air Force had been putting the arm on the Navy to abandon its own procurement effort for the BAMS UAV. A Global Hawk equipped with mission package currently costs the Air Force about...

The Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards Air Force Base has long been known for providing the weaponry for future conflicts, but recently it has been called on to assist in ongoing conflicts as well. "We are also sort of the 911 of your Air Force," Maj. Gen. Doug Pearson, the center's commander, told members of the California City Economic Development Corp. on Thursday night. When things go wrong, "someone will call me," he said. The most recent example came during the early days of the war in Iraq when the Air Force was having difficulties with some of...

In celebration of the past, the Air Force chief of staff got an eyeful of the present and future of flight at the world's premier flight test facility. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper visited Edwards Air Force Base on Nov. 22 as part of a Centennial of Flight celebration. The event featured aerial demonstrations and static displays of many of the current and future aircraft in the Air Force arsenal, and hosted members of the Eagles, distinguished aviators who have advanced the world of aerospace. "What we have here is the trace of history, a bloodline of...

The first FAA authorization to routinely fly an unmanned aircraft within the National Airspace System (NAS) was recently granted to the U.S. Air Force. The military will use this sign-off to fly the RQ-4 Global Hawk, which was widely used in Afghanistan and the recent war in Iraq. The new Certificate of Authorization (COA) allows it to be used throughout the NAS in a new homeland defense role. The certificate is the first national COA granted for an unmanned air vehicle system. Of course, the Global Hawk had previously flown in the NAS but on a restricted basis, while testing...

Although unheralded by the mainstream press (of whose members few would even be capable of recognizing the importance of such an event), a few American civilians were celebrating their tiny model airplane's 1,821 mile flight this week as if Christmas had arrived early.   Their tiny TAM-5, equipped with a satellite phone, computer, and GPS successfully guided itself from North America to Europe.   There was no pilot aboard.   http://tam.plannet21.com/   Considering the successes of large-scale, multi-million Dollar drones in the War on Terror (e.g. killing high-ranking Taliban with a hellfire missile in Afghanistan and killing high-ranking al-Qaeda operatives...

<p>Computer systems at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif., were shut down this week as a result of the "Blaster" computer worm.</p> <p>The desert base is home to the Air Force Flight Test Center, which conducts work on the B-2 and B-1B bombers, the airborne laser, the Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle, the new F-22 Raptor jet fighter, the Joint Strike Fighter and other high-tech weapons.</p>

PALMDALE - With a light show worthy of a rock concert, the latest star in the Air Force's arsenal was unveiled Friday with the rollout of the first production-model Global Hawk. The Northrop Grumman hangar at Air Force Plant 42 was filled with dignitaries and employees to cheer the bulbous, grey-and-white unmanned vehicle. Like the Wright Flyer did 100 years ago, "Global Hawk will lead the way in another revolution in aviation - unmanned systems," said Scott Seymour, corporate vice president and president, Northrop Grumman Integrated Systems. The futuristic-looking aircraft is a high-altitude, long-endurance, unmanned aerial reconnaissance system designed to...

PALMDALE, Calif., Aug 02, 2003 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Air Force rolled out the first production version of the Global Hawk robot spy plane in Palmdale, Calif. Prototypes of the Global Hawk, built at Northrop Grumman's Antelope Valley Manufacturing Center in Palmdale, were sent into service in Afghanistan and Iraq even though they were still undergoing tests by the U.S. Air Force. Of the program's 3,000 hours of flying time, over half were for combat reconnaissance missions in Afghanistan and Iraq. The aircraft provided 55 percent of the images for "time-sensitive" targets, including...