TSMC Eyes 3nm Chip Production in Japan with $17 Billion Kumamoto Investment 
Tencent Shares Slide After WeChat Restricts YuanBao AI Promotional Links 
Australian Scandium Project Backed by Richard Friedland Poised to Support U.S. Critical Minerals Stockpile 
OpenAI Expands Enterprise AI Strategy With Major Hiring Push Ahead of New Business Offering 
SpaceX Pushes for Early Stock Index Inclusion Ahead of Potential Record-Breaking IPO 
Ford and Geely Explore Strategic Manufacturing Partnership in Europe 
Nvidia Nears $20 Billion OpenAI Investment as AI Funding Race Intensifies 
Anthropic Eyes $350 Billion Valuation as AI Funding and Share Sale Accelerate 
Prudential Financial Reports Higher Q4 Profit on Strong Underwriting and Investment Gains 
SoftBank Shares Slide After Arm Earnings Miss Fuels Tech Stock Sell-Off 
Nintendo Shares Slide After Earnings Miss Raises Switch 2 Margin Concerns 
Once Upon a Farm Raises Nearly $198 Million in IPO, Valued at Over $724 Million 
Amazon Stock Rebounds After Earnings as $200B Capex Plan Sparks AI Spending Debate 
Missouri Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Challenging Starbucks’ Diversity and Inclusion Policies 
Rio Tinto Shares Hit Record High After Ending Glencore Merger Talks 
Baidu Approves $5 Billion Share Buyback and Plans First-Ever Dividend in 2026 
Toyota’s Surprise CEO Change Signals Strategic Shift Amid Global Auto Turmoil 
SAN DIEGO, Feb. 25, 2016 -- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) successfully flew a SYERS-2 intelligence gathering sensor on an RQ-4 Global Hawk high altitude long endurance unmanned aircraft system (UAS), marking the first time the legacy U.S. Air Force sensor has been demonstrated on a high altitude unmanned aircraft.
With the success of the SYERS-2 flight, Northrop Grumman plans to fly an Optical Bar Camera (OBC) sensor and an MS-177 multi-spectral sensor later in the year. Payload integration is not new to Global Hawk. NASA has successfully integrated and flown over 30 different information-gathering payloads on Global Hawk.
Existing models of the U.S Air Force Global Hawk are capable of carrying an Enhanced Integrated Sensor Suite (EISS), Airborne Signals Intelligence Payload (ASIP) and Multi-Platform Radar Technology Insertion Program (MP-RTIP). The addition of legacy and future sensors is made possible by Northrop Grumman's innovative Universal Payload Adapter (UPA), a bracket that mounts to an existing Global Hawk airframe, allowing it to support a wide variety of payloads.
"This SYERS-2 flight is only the beginning. We firmly believe that with the addition of the UPA, Global Hawk is capable of flying any mission the U.S. Air Force requires," said Mick Jaggers, vice president and program manager, Global Hawk unmanned aircraft system programs, Northrop Grumman. "Northrop Grumman is funding this study in order to prove that the system can affordably carry the same sensors as any other intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance [ISR] aircraft. We look forward to continuing to work with our Air Force partners on this groundbreaking solution."
Flight tests are taking place at Northrop Grumman's Palmdale, Calif. facility in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force. Northrop Grumman and the Air Force reached a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) last year that allows the company to test previously unavailable sensors on the Global Hawk.
Northrop Grumman's high altitude long endurance UAS series have exceeded more than 160,000 total flight hours. The system's cost per flight hour has fallen to half that of the manned competitor.
Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, and logistics and modernization to government and commercial customers worldwide. Please visit www.northropgrumman.com for more information.
CONTACT: Elizabeth McCann
858-618-2214 (office)
858-432-8822 (mobile)
[email protected]
