The US Army has contracted Northrop Grumman to develop the RangeHawk drone prototype to support the accelerating pace of hypersonic testing.
The US Army has awarded Northrop Grumman a contract to develop the RangeHawk drone prototype, a modified RQ-4 Global Hawk high-altitude uncrewed aerial system designed to support the growing pace of hypersonic testing.
The RangeHawk is expected to provide a more efficient alternative to the current ship-based method of hypersonic test data collection, which is both time and resource-intensive.
Under the $325.5-million contract, Northrop Grumman will develop a universal payload architecture for the RangeHawk by May 14, 2031, enabling the rapid integration of different mission systems.
The award follows a separate $43-million contract to Aerovironment to install phased-array receivers on RangeHawk platforms for telemetry data collection.
To Improve Hypersonic Testing
Under the current testing approach, vessels are deployed to designated ocean test corridors beneath a hypersonic vehicle’s flight path to track and record critical flight-test data using onboard intelligence-gathering sensors.
Because of the complexity of these operations — including the lengthy repositioning of ships that can take months — the number of hypersonic missile tests remains limited.
With three RangeHawks operational since 2023, converted from older Block 10 models, the Pentagon has reportedly reduced test preparation timelines from months to days.
Through its SkyRange program, the US Department of Defense plans to convert two dozen Block 20 and Block 30 RQ-4s to help increase the annual number of hypersonic missile tests from roughly 12 to 50.
Hypersonic Testbeds
Hypersonic technology involves weapons traveling and maneuvering at speeds exceeding Mach 5, or more than five times the speed of sound (3,836 miles/6,174 kilometers per hour).
Projectiles traveling at such speeds are extremely difficult to intercept, even for the most advanced air defense systems.
The US is widely viewed as trailing peer competitors China and Russia, both of which have already fielded operational hypersonic weapons.
To close the gap, the US is pursuing several hypersonic programs, including the US Army’s Long-Range Hypersonic Weapon, known as Dark Eagle, which is nearing operational deployment.
To support these efforts, the Pentagon is also investing in additional testing infrastructure beyond SkyRange, including the Multi-Service Advanced Capability Hypersonics Test Bed program and the Hypersonic and High-Cadence Airborne Testing Capabilities initiative.
