U.S. Air Force upgrades to Northrop's spyplane may cost half of prior estimate | Reuters: Upgrades for theNorthrop Grumman Corp high-altitude, unmanned GlobalHawk surveillance aircraft could cost as little as half theprevious estimate of $4 billion, a senior U.S. Air Forceofficial said Monday.
Lieutenant General Robert Otto, deputy chief of staff forintelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, said two keyupgrades were needed for the Global Hawks: a new electro-opticalsensor and an optical camera with a wider field of view.
Both items could be added to the Northrop drone for perhapsas little as half the earlier estimate of $4 billion, he said.
The Air Force still hopes to retire its aging fleet ofmanned U-2 spy planes built by Lockheed Martin Corp because it could not afford two high-altitude surveillanceaircraft. The upgrades would be needed for the Global Hawksbefore the U-2 could be retired.
"We love the U-2 (but) we cannot afford both platforms,"Otto told reporters at the annual Air Force Associationconference, saying declining operating costs made the GlobalHawks the preferred option.
