The RQ-4 Global Hawk recently completed a series of ground and air demonstrations at Beale AFB, Calif., announced Northrop Grumman on April 3. Northrop Grumman worked with the Air Force, at the request of Air Combat Command, to determine whether the remotely piloted aircraft is compatible with different satellite communications links even without changes to the RPA’s hardware, software, or payload, states the release. “This powerful demonstration illustrates Global Hawk’s unique versatility,” said Alfredo Ramirez, director and chief architect of Northrop Grumman’s HALE Enterprise. “We’re ecstatic with Global Hawk’s ability to provide intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance products to operational end-users via multiple paths.” The Jan. 13-15 demonstration showed the Global Hawk is capable of sending mission data through a separate satellite link from the one used for command and control, states the release.
The Air Force is moving forward with a new, algorithm-driven system to help U.S. Northern Command better detect airborne threats. NORTHCOM and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, which are tasked with protecting the homeland from attack, depend on a slew of radars and other data systems to monitor U.S.…