He has also speculated that the two undercarriage fairings over the UAV's wings may house datalinks and that the belly fairing could be designed for modular payloads, allowing the UAV to be used for strike missions and/or electronic warfare. On the basis of the few publicly available photographs of the RQ-170, aviation expert Bill Sweetman has assessed that the UAV is equipped with an electro-optical/ infrared sensor and possibly an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar mounted in its belly fairing. US Army recognition drawings of the RQ-170 The postulated weight and ceiling parameters suggests the possible use of a General Electric TF34 engine, or a variant in the airframe. The publication also suggests that the medium-grey color implies a mid-altitude ceiling, unlikely to exceed 50,000 feet (15,000 m), since a higher ceiling would normally be painted darker for concealment. Aviation Week postulates that these elements suggest the designers have avoided "highly sensitive technologies" due to the near certainty of eventual operational loss inherent with a single engine design and a desire to avoid the risk of compromising leading edge technology. The design lacks several elements common to stealth engineering, such as zigzag edged landing gear doors and sharp leading edges, and the exhaust is not shielded by the wing. Its takeoff weight is estimated as being greater than the RQ-3 DarkStar's, which was 8,500 pounds (3,900 kg). The RQ-170 is a flying wing design containing a single (as yet classified) engine, and was estimated in 2009 by Aviation Week as having a wingspan of approximately 66 feet (20 m). successfully deployed and redeployed RQ-170 Sentinel forces." Design In 2021, the 432d Air Expeditionary Wing made a statement in which they said that "the 432nd AEW has. A USAF colonel subsequently commented that RQ-170 is separate from the MQ-X program, which has yet to determine stealth or powerplant requirements, and thus the Sentinel will not replace the General Atomics MQ-1 Predator and General Atomics MQ-9 Reaper drones. The USAF confirmed the "grainy photos of a gray, flying-wing-typed unmanned airplane near Kandahar Airfield." Since then, this aircraft has been known as "The Beast of Kandahar" in relation to the sighting of the RQ-170 Sentinel on 4 December 2009. Fulghum believes that the UAV is probably a "tactical, operations-oriented platform and not a strategic intelligence-gathering design". The "RQ" designation (R for reconnaissance, Q for unmanned) indicates that the RQ-170 Sentinel does not carry weapons. In a December 2012 report, journalist David Axe stated that "20 or so" RQ-170s had been built. According to the US Army Training Circular 3-01.80, the Sentinel has a wingspan of 65 feet 7 inches (20 m), and is 14 feet 9 inches (4.50 m) long. An Air Force official said, "It's the same concept as DarkStar, it's stealthy, and it uses the same apertures and data links, only it's bigger." It is a tailless flying wing aircraft with pods built into the upper surface of each wing. Journalists have noted design similarities between the RQ-170 and previous stealth and UAV programs such as the RQ-3 DarkStar and Polecat. The RQ-170 Sentinel was developed by Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works as a stealth unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). It has a flying wing design, and uses a single engine, speculated to be either a General Electric TF34 turbofan or a Garrett TFE731. Some images and details of the aircraft were released after Iran captured an RQ-170 in 2011. Introduced in 2007, it was deployed to Afghanistan in late 2007, and to South Korea two years later, in September 2009. While the USAF has released few details on the UAV's design or capabilities, defense analysts believe that it is a stealth aircraft fitted with aerial reconnaissance equipment. The Lockheed Martin RQ-170 Sentinel, nicknamed Wraith, is an American unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) developed by Lockheed Martin and operated by the United States Air Force (USAF) for the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).
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