Pentagon rejects call to limit Global Hawk output

Posted on: Mar. 20th, 2006 || Source: flightglobal.com | E-mail Article | Print Article

The US Department of Defense has rejected fresh calls by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) for production of the Northrop Grumman RQ-4B Global Hawk unmanned air vehicle to be limited to just flight-test articles rather than operational aircraft.

Production of the high-altitude, long-endurance UAV variant is already under way. The DoD warns the proposed halt "would incur significant cost and schedule delays".

The DoD says that, while the business case for the RQ-4B is again being reviewed, the UAV is essential to current military operations. “Combatant commanders continue to request this capability, and the acquisition strategy balances risk with the need to support the warfighter,” it argues.

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