The first of two production Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles began flying missions in support of the global war on terrorism within hours of arriving in theater earlier this month.
The aircraft -- managed by Wright-Pat's Aeronautical Systems Center's Global Hawk Systems Group -- are part of the 12th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron at a forward-base overseas. The two UAVs are named AF-4 and AF-5.
Just 36 hours after arriving on station, AF-5 flew its first combat sortie, which lasted nearly 24 hours. During this initial aerial reconnaissance flight, the Global Hawk's new production integrated sensor suite performed flawlessly, booting up in half the time of the advanced concept technology demonstration sensor, officials said.
AF-4's arrival at its new "home" was delayed a day due to bad weather along its flight route. But it landed safely on Jan. 12.
"We are extremely excited to have these two aircraft in the hands of our warfighters," said Randy Brown, Global Hawk Systems Group director. "This is a major milestone in the program and one that is historical for the future of Air Force reconnaissance. There have been a number of improvements to the program, and I'm very proud of the work that everyone here has done to make this a reality."
Aero-News Network
The aircraft -- managed by Wright-Pat's Aeronautical Systems Center's Global Hawk Systems Group -- are part of the 12th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron at a forward-base overseas. The two UAVs are named AF-4 and AF-5.
Just 36 hours after arriving on station, AF-5 flew its first combat sortie, which lasted nearly 24 hours. During this initial aerial reconnaissance flight, the Global Hawk's new production integrated sensor suite performed flawlessly, booting up in half the time of the advanced concept technology demonstration sensor, officials said.
AF-4's arrival at its new "home" was delayed a day due to bad weather along its flight route. But it landed safely on Jan. 12.
"We are extremely excited to have these two aircraft in the hands of our warfighters," said Randy Brown, Global Hawk Systems Group director. "This is a major milestone in the program and one that is historical for the future of Air Force reconnaissance. There have been a number of improvements to the program, and I'm very proud of the work that everyone here has done to make this a reality."
Aero-News Network
