The US Air Force will phase out surveillance drones by fiscal year 2027.
This became known from a letter from an employee of the CenterAir Force Life Cycle Management, sent to Northrop Grumman on the timing of the completion of production of the latest version of the RQ-4. It is noted that the operation of all Global Hawks will be completed in the 2026 financial year.
Information about the decommissioning of thesethe drones were confirmed and commented by Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek. According to the official, the Air Force will decommission nine operational Global Hawk Block 40. This will happen in fiscal year 2027. Instead, the agency plans to work with "more sustainable" surveillance technologies. What exactly is not specified.