Ten Years and Counting

Ten Years and Counting: The Air Force’s RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle, built by Northrop Grumman, celebrated its 10th anniversary of flight Feb. 28. On that date in 1998 a Global Hawk prototype made history when it flew for one hour over Edwards AFB, Calif., climbing to an altitude of 32,000 feet. Fast forward 10 years later and the aircraft fleet, now in a much more refined fashion, has logged more than 20,000 flight hours, of which 15,000 have been flown in support of combat operations in Afghanistan and Iraq since late 2001 when developmental models were sent to the region to help out in Afghanistan. The Global Hawk cruises at altitudes up to 65,000 feet and can stay aloft for more than 30 hours to peer down through any weather to provide commanders with real-time imagery of large geographic areas. “Global Hawk continues to prove its versatility and persistence by providing critical intelligence to Airmen, Marines and soldiers on the ground,” said Brig. Gen. H.D. Polumbo, commander of the 9th Reconnaissance Wing at Beale AFB, Calif., the Global Hawk’s main operating base, in Northrop Grumman’s Feb. 29 release. “It is a combat-proven, strategic capability with the tactical flexibility to survey large geographic areas, whether supporting overseas military operations or domestic civil missions like last year's wildfires in Southern California.” (Includes Edwards report by A1C Stacy Sanchez)

3/4/2008

On the Record

Mission One
"The health and safety of our pilots—all of our pilots—is our utmost priority. Our operational flight surgeons and our medical staff interact with our pilots on a daily basis."
—Brig. Gen. Daniel Wyman, Air Combat Command command surgeon, speaking to reporters during a teleconference, May 9, 2012. He was emphasizing that the Air Force is doing all it can to ensure the safety of F-22 pilots as service officials continue to home in on the cause of why some Raptor pilots have experienced hypoxia-like symptoms in the cockpit like difficulty concentrating, fatigue, headaches, and nausea.

On the Record

Message to Congress
"If you give us force structure back, give us the money, too. Because the quickest way I know to a hollow force is to give us structure without money. Simple as that. . . . 'Make it work' is not a satisfactory solution."
—Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz articulating his message to lawmakers on the Air Force's Fiscal 2013 budget proposal during a speech at the Stimson Center in Washington, D.C., May 1, 2012. The Air Force leadership has proposed reducing force structure and personnel next fiscal year in order to maintain a ready and capable force as the service absorbs significant spending cuts.