NATO inks $1.7B deal for Block 40 Global Hawks
- By Defense Systems Staff
- May 21, 2012
NATO officials signed a $1.7 billion contract with Northrop Grumman on May 20 for five Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicles that the alliance plans to use for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, reports
Defense News.
Thirteen of NATO's 28 member countries are currently contributing to the purchase of the unarmed Block 40 Global Hawks and all of the members are expected to eventually participate in the financial support of the program, the story said.
The high-altitude unmanned aircraft will be managed under NATO's Allied Ground Surveillance program headquartered at a NATO base in Sicily that also is used by the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy for their respective Global Hawks operating in the area, the story said.