Northrup Grumman's autonomous Global Hawk aircraft lands during an airshow for the first time

GEELONG, Australia - For the first time, Northrop Grumman's RQ-4 Global Hawk autonomous aircraft system has landed during an airshow. The aircraft flew in smoothly, landing precisely on the runway before pausing and then taxiing itself to a point where it was towed to the static display area at Avalon 2019.

This autonomous system has been supporting the U.S. and its allies for nearly two decades around the world. The Block 40 aircraft arrived after a 13-hour, 3,075 nautical mile journey from Andersen Air Force Base.

Global Hawk's important mission is to provide a broad spectrum of data collection capability to support joint combatant forces in worldwide peacetime, contingency, disaster relief and military operations.

With a wingspan of 130 feet – the same as a 737 - Global Hawk provides near-real-time actionable intelligence for more than 30 hours at a time – at altitudes of 60,000 feet or 11 miles high.

There are always several Global Hawk systems in the air somewhere in the world with flight crews operating the system halfway across the world out of harm’s way.

Click here to view on Northrop Grumman's YouTube channel.

Ready to make a purchase? Search the Intelligent Aerospace Buyer's Guide for companies, new products, press releases, and videos