Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The RQ-3 DarkStar (known as Tier III-or "Tier three minus" during development) is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Its first flight was on March 29, 1996. The Department of Defense terminated DarkStar in January 1999, after determining the UAV was not aerodynamically stable and was not meeting cost and performance objectives. [1]
The RQ-3 DarkStar was a highly-advanced, stealthy reconnaissance remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) designed for use in high-threat environments. Though it never entered production, the DarkStar was an important milestone in the development of even more capable RPAs which followed.
With a fuselage built by Lockheed Martin and wings built by Boeing, the RQ-3 incorporated stealth technology to make it difficult to detect as it cruised above 45,000 feet. Carrying either radar or optical sensors, the Dark Star could immediately send digital information via satellite, allowing data to be examined in near real-time.
Weighing a beefy 8,500 pounds, the RQ-3 DarkStar was powered by a Williams-Rolls FJ44-1A engine that offered a takeoff thrust of 1,900 pounds. It provided a cruising speed of 288 mph...
Page details technical specifications, development, and operational history of the Lockheed / Boeing RQ-3 DarkStar High-Altitude, Long Endurance (MALE) UAV including pictures.
The RQ-3 DarkStar (known as Tier III- or “Tier three minus” during development) is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV). Its first flight was on March 29, 1996. The Department of Defense terminated DarkStar in January 1999, after determining the UAV was not aerodynamically stable and was not meeting cost and performance objectives.
Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) developed the stealthy, low-observable DarkStar to provide sustained reconnaissance information from anywhere within enemy territory, day or night, in all types of weather.