Unmanned U.S. spy plane takes to the skies

Global Hawk flies over Edwards Air Force Base

March 3, 1998
Web posted at: 2:41 p.m. EST (1941 GMT)

SAN DIEGO (CNN) -- Although the Air Force could conceivably use its newest spy plane to look for speeders on the highways, it has more ambitious plans for the sophisticated Global Hawk.

Flying at 65,000 feet, the Global Hawk "can read license plates," says Claude Hesham, vice president of Teledyne Ryan Aeronautical, which helped design the plane.

Created in conjunction with the U.S. military, the Global Hawk is the first high-altitude, long-endurance, unmanned aerial reconnaissance system. In layman's terms, it's a spy plane that flies on its own.

CNN affiliate reporter Deborah Takahara, of KNSD, describes the plane
	1.4MB/17 sec./320x240 597K/17 sec./160x120 QuickTime movie

The Global Hawk can fly for 40 hours at a time with the help of two computers preprogrammed for navigation.

Hashem said a 56-minute test flight over Edwards Air Force Base last weekend marked a tremendous accomplishment for Teledyne Ryan and a breakthrough for the military: the United States now has capability to send planes into hostile areas without risking anyone's life.

Reporter Debra Takahara contributed to this report.

Related sites:

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

• U.S. Air Force
  • Global Hawk completes first flight

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.

---

 

---

Sound off on our message boards & chat

© 1998 Cable News Network, Inc.
A Time Warner Company
All Rights Reserved.

Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.