Northrop Grumman [NOC] and Canada-based L-3 MAS are teaming up to provide a version of Global Hawk to the Canadian government for surveillance missions over the country’s territories in the Arctic, the companies said yesterday.
Northrop Grumman and L-3 MAS, a division of L-3 Communications [LLL] that operates out of Mirabel, Quebec and provides aircraft support services to the government, have dubbed the version of the high-altitude long-endurance unmanned aircraft Polar Hawk.
Dane Marolt, Northrop Grumman’s business development director for Polar Hawk, said in a phone interview that the partnership has approached the Canadian government offering three of the aircraft. The Global Hawks would allow constant surveillance of the Arctic as it has become a growing national security priority for Canada, he said.
“The Canadians right now are in the stages of identifying exactly what their requirements are and what their needs are and how Polar Hawk can best meet their needs,” Marolt said.
Global Hawks have been extensively used by the U.S. military for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions and are capable at flying above 60,000 feet and staying aloft for more than 30 hours.
NATO finalized plans with Northrop Grumman at its summit earlier this month to purchase five Global Hawks for ISR missions on behalf of alliance members. They are expected to become operational in 2017 (Defense Daily, May 22, 2012).