Northrop Grumman has delivered the sixth RQ-4A Global Hawk production model to the Air Force. The seventh Global Hawk is scheduled for delivery this summer, and development team members say they are working on completing the final assembly and prepping for the first flight of the next-generation enhanced version of the high-flying unmanned aerial vehicle. The new model will be able to carry 1,000 more pounds of payload. So far Global Hawks have flown more than 5,500 combat hours in more than 250 missions for the global war on terror.
The Pentagon’s fiscal 2026 defense budget, submitted to Congress last week, accelerates the downsizing of the U.S. Air Force. It proposes divesting 340 aircraft, while only acquiring 76. These cuts risk the Air Force’s ability prevail. “Peace through strength” has...
