Northrop Grumman's Euro Hawk

Northrop Grumman Euro Hawk notches first flight

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The Northrop Grumman's Euro Hawk unmanned aircraft system successfully completed its first flight Tuesday, the company announced Wednesday.
The aircraft took off at approximately 10:32 a.m. from Northrop Grumman's Palmdale, Calif., plant and climbed to 32,000 feet over the desert skies before landing nearly two hours later at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.
The German Ministry of Defence in 2007 awarded a contract for the surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft to EuroHawk GmbH &mdash a 50-50 joint venture of Northrop and EADS Defence & Security, which will provide a new signals intelligence system for the aircraft.
The Euro Hawk has a wingspan larger than a commercial airliner, and can fly for 30 hours, reaching more than 60,000 feet. It is scheduled for delivery between 2016 and 2016, to replace manned Breguet Atlantic aircraft, which have been in service since 1972 and are set to retire this year.
The flight "strengthens Northrop Grumman's first trans-Atlantic cooperation with Germany and EADS Defence & Security," Duke Dufresne, sector vice president and general manager of the Strike and Surveillance Systems Division for Northrop Grumman's Aerospace Systems sector, said in a news release