The US Air Force flies the Northrop Grumman RQ-4 Global Hawk, a high-altitude, long-endurance surveillance drone, of which 45 were built for the service and delivered from 2003 to about 2017. The Block 10, 20 and 30 versions have been retired, leaving nine Block 40 aircraft with ground moving target radar, based at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, under Air Combat Command. The fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act bars their retirement until 30 September 2030, and in August 2026 the Air Force said it no longer had a projected retirement date and began planning a Northrop Grumman support contract that could run from January 2028 to June 2033.
