An RQ-4 is set to land at Robins AFB, Ga., this week, marking the first time a remotely piloted aircraft has flown to an Air Force maintenance depot. The Global Hawk is headed south for a paint job, “to prevent corrosion and deterioration of the aircraft,” according to a Robins press release. The visit will also serve as a trial run for the possibility of establishing a more permanent RQ-4 depot operation at Robins, Brig. Gen. John Kubinec, commander of the Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex, told the Macon Telegraph in January. The RPA is scheduled to land at Robins May 10.
The Pentagon has concluded a new agreement to buy laser-guidance kits that turn rockets into drone-killing weapons. BAE Systems and the Defense Department announced a framework deal of up to seven years for 25,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System guidance kits annually for the U.S. military.