Kandahar Mystery UCAV confirmed!

With the Sentinel's existence now confirmed, that raises the inevitable question: what else does the Air Force (DoD) have that we don't know about.

I think the better question is how long this has been in the works; and the answer is probably not as long as other, more exotic projects. Since we can all assume the nice new hangar at Groom has nothing to do with this specific project, there are undoubtedly far more exciting projects coming down the pike in addition to the dozen or so still unacknowledged projects that test pilots have hinted at over the years. This goes all the way back to the abrupt closure of the Blackbird program, skyquakes, etc., etc. I still remember the days of the Beale brownouts and lockdowns which were very real and to this day have no explanation. The white world USAF may be undergoing a 'pussification,' (by the way of unsexy, unmanned platforms) but the black world, as I would imagine it, is still extremely potent.

If the RQ-170 Sentinel has been flying since 2005 its prototype may well have been the Desert Prowler, as I have suspected since seeing the first pictures from Afghanistan. I would also not be surprised to learn that the prototype was designated P-170. The Desert Prowler was in development around the same time as the P-175 Polecat and both aircraft initially flew in 2005.

Would that lead you to believe that this was a fore runner or a parallel development project then? The fact that is has been operating during testing out of Tonopah Test Range is neat considering this project would of been coming online as the F-117s went into retirement.

Also a bit more information has come forward about its location in Afghanistan.

At Kandahar, the Sentinel was seen operating out of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems' hangar.

I guess that confirms it for the Kandahar base which is interesting to then consider how long it may have been operating there with out drawing attention with a day light photo till now.

So the article on Flight threw an interesting curveball today. The USAF said they had A stealthy UAV, designated the RQ-170 Sentinel operating in Afghanistan. They never said the UAV in the pictures was it. There was no mention of the pics at all in the press release. It seems to fit the description but that description can fit another UAV as well. How do we know that this isn`t something to throw us off?

reply to post by Canada_EH


Alleged patent drawings here.

Note, that the drawings show no signs of the visible sensor pods above the wings.

Originally posted by clay2 baraka
reply to post by Canada_EH

 

Alleged patent drawings here.

Note, that the drawings show no signs of the visible sensor pods above the wings.

And it doesnt show landing gear or the engine either

A patent does not have to show ever little detail. its more to show intellectual property rights of an idea, which is the general design of that particular airframe.

The landing gear do look heavy. Maybe this UAV will be making carrier landings? Have there been any UAV carrier landings? Seems kinda unsafe to me.

reply to post by Dirty American

The X-47B is supposed to begin land based carrier trials in the next few years, the move from a fixed runway to a carrier.

I believe the X47B is scheduled to make its first proper carrier landing in late 2011, however boeing had been testing their software for the x45 on a modified fa/18f two seater plane and in 2007 succesfully tested carrier approachs to a few hundred feet, however I can not remember if they carried on those tests and landed (they had said they were two years from an actual landing to arrest) anyone else know/clarify?

One of the Flight bloggers sent a request to the Air Force for better pictures of the Sentinel, and was told that at this time they would not be releasing any pictures. When he interviewed a Colonel about the MQ-X, he was told that the Sentinel would not be offered, as it was "different" for the mission requirements. When he asked him about pictures, the Col asked if he went to the PA office, and smiled when he was told they said no.

I think that kind of leads weight into the stipulation that the UAV pictured is not the one from the press release.

A Lockheed Martin spokeswoman in Palmdale confirmed to local news media that the UAV in the pictures was the RQ-170 Sentinel. She refused, however, to add any details to the previously released official statement. The story - basically just the most recent picture, the offoicla statement, and the LM comment - made front page news in the Antelope Valley Press on Thursday, December 10.

its look like the new british UCAV there was some images of it in the news papers not so long ago,

reply to post by BRITWARRIOR


Be interested in any details you have of that, as I cant find a UAV that looks like this one...maybe the BAE taranis

When i was in active duty, i worked on the Predator @ Indian Springs, NV
Sometimes we would see new planes/UAV's being tested out there. One such plane looked exactly like the one in this topic however, It was manned was later confirmed it had the option of being unmanned.

Being a simple enlisted airman i wasn't privy to the exact details about it. I had no idea which company was responsible for the plane nor anything more than what i saw with my own eyes and the rumors going on about it.

This all happened about 3-4 years ago.

Here's the most recent pic of it shows the front better, and underneath it.

reply to post by Canada_EH


Could this be what people mistake for ufos?

It looks like a UFO

[edit on 7-10-2010 by intelgurl]

The USAF posted an RQ-170 fact sheet on an af.mil base URL:

Factsheets: RQ-170 Sentinel

It doesn't appear to disclose anything new, however may be a good location for the USAF to post new information on the program.

There was an excerpt from Air Force Magazine recently that references the RQ-170 Sentinel UAS. This is further acknowledgment of it's existence:

Air Force Magazine - June 2010

The Distributed Common Ground System (DCGS) primarily works with U-2 Dragon Lady surveillance-reconnaissance aircraft and MC-12s, along with MQ-1, MQ-9, RQ-4 Global Hawk, and RQ-170 Sentinel RPAs.

I also noted the same article was posted on the Hanscom AFB news called The Integrator.