South Korea RQ-4 Global Hawk

South Korea bought four Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Block 30 (I) Global Hawk high-altitude surveillance drones through US Foreign Military Sales for the Republic of Korea Air Force. The US notified Congress of the sale, estimated at USD 1.2 billion, in December 2012; Seoul ordered the aircraft in 2014, and they arrived between December 2019 and September 2020. In 2019 the US approved a further sale of contractor logistics support estimated at USD 950 million to sustain the fleet, and in November 2020 the Air Force formed the 39th Reconnaissance Wing to operate the Global Hawks with its other reconnaissance aircraft. Air Force data published in August 2026 showed all four aircraft in service and 46 defects recorded from 2021 to 2025.