Japan Gets First RQ-4B Global Hawk Drone

Northrop Grumman ferried the first of Japan’s three RQ-4B Global Hawks via a non-stop transpacific flight.

The aircraft departed on Thursday, March 10, from Palmdale, California landing 18.7 hours later on March 12 at Misawa Air Base, Misawa, Japan.

RQ-4B Global Hawk, a large high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), is equipped with mission-specific sensors to meet ISR needs. It has a wingspan of over 130 feet and has a maximum takeoff weight of 16 tons. The UAV has a range of over 12,000 miles and can stay in the air for more than 34 hours.