Air Force 
and Northrop Grumman officials officially unveiled the Block 40 RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle at the company’s Palmdale, Calif., facility June 25. It is the first of 15 aircraft in the latest iteration of the high-flying reconnaissance UAV and includes the multi-platform radar technology insertion program (MP-RTIP) sensor. USAF expects to begin fielding the Block 40 aircraft at Grand Forks AFB, N.D., next year. In a company release, Duke Dufresne, sector vice president for Northrop’s strike and surveillance systems division, said that with the new sensor, which just completed initial testing last month, “the Block 40 aircraft will provide game-changing situational awareness for our warfighters with its unprecedented capability to detect, track, and identify stationary and moving targets.” The aircraft, AF-18, is slated to begin flight tests in July.
The Air Force could conduct an operation like Israel's successful air campaign against Iran's nuclear sites, military leadership and air defenses, but readiness issues would make it risky, airpower experts said. Limited spare parts and training, low mission capable rates and few flying hours would put a drag on USAF's…