The US Air Force's RQ-4B Global Hawk strategic drone carried out an unusual mission in the Black Sea, 100km off the Russian coast
The US Air Force's RQ-4B Global Hawk drone carried out an unusual mission in the Black Sea. The strategic reconnaissance drone flew 100km off the Russian coast.
Here's What We Know
The RQ-4B Global Hawk is stationed at a NATO base on the island of Sicily. Earlier this week it was active in the Black Sea. The Northrop Grumman drone flew near the Russian cities of Sochi and Novorossiysk.
2125 Zulu FORTE11 (RQ-4B) keeps getting closer to the coastline off of Sochi, Russia. Rough estimate is the unmanned aircraft is around 54 nautical miles off the coast over the Black Sea.???? pic.twitter.com/tE7Z073qI8
- Thenewarea51 (@thenewarea51) May 9, 2023
This mission was very unusual for a drone. The RQ-4B Global Hawk's flights are often limited to the central Black Sea. Lately the drone has started flying more in the eastern part of the sea, approaching Russian territory.
Around the same time as the Global Hawk, the RC-135W Rivet Join reconnaissance aircraft carried out its mission in the Black Sea. It belongs to the British Royal Air Force. The aircraft operated along the coast of temporarily occupied Crimea.
In the #BlackSea, an increased activity of reconnaissance aviation of #NATO countries is recorded: a #British RC-135W AWACS aircraft is operating along the #Crimea, while an #American RQ-4B Global Hawk drone is interested in the coast of Sochi and Novorossiysk pic.twitter.com/w3ZzdekUIJ
- Middle East Update (@islamicworldupd) May 9, 2023
The appearance of Rivet Join near the Crimean peninsula is a common occurrence. But what the RQ-4B Global Hawk drone was doing in the eastern Black Sea is still hard to say. But in any case, there are quite a few objects on the territory of the Russian Federation that could be of interest to the US and NATO.
Source: The Drive
