Lockheed Martin RQ-3

AAI RQ-3 DarkStar
Second prototype RQ-3A
Type:	Prototype of a reconnaissance drone
Design country:	United States
Manufacturer:	AAI Corporation Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Boeing IDS
First flight:	March 29, 1996
Commissioning:	Flight tests ended in 1999
Production time:	Was never mass-produced
Number of pieces:	2

The Lockheed Martin RQ-3 DarkStar (also known as Tier III-Minus ) is a drone that was created in collaboration between DARPA , Lockheed Martin 's Skunk Works and Boeing on behalf of the Defense Airborne Reconnaissance Office (DARO).

description

The first flight of the RQ-3 took place on March 29, 1996. It was presented to the public on June 1, 1996. This prototype crashed in the same year. A second prototype, the RQ-3A, was completed in 1997 and had its maiden flight in 1998. It has electro-optical sensors and a high-resolution synthetic aperture radar . Due to its stealth properties, the drone is very difficult to detect by enemy radar .

The system can start independently, flies up to 500 miles in its usually heavily protected area of ​​operation, where it can stay for eight hours, and then automatically returns to the base. It is used for tactical reconnaissance and can work with the Global Hawk (Tier II-Plus) reconnaissance aircraft. The program was discontinued in early 1999 for reasons of budget.

During the Iraq war , however, an improved version of the DarkStar is said to have been used. The exact details are secret , but employees of the US Navy and US Air Force have described some features. The airframe should essentially be an enlarged variant of the DarkStar, whereby a lower infrared signature could also be achieved. In the area of ​​avionics, an LPI radar and data link as well as electro-optical sensors are to be used. The data obtained is primarily transmitted via a satellite connection, with the antenna on the top of the machine to protect it from hostile SIGINT sensors. The drones were only produced in very small numbers and never went into series production.

Technical specifications

RQ-3 Dark Star at the Dryden Flight Research Center on Edwards AFB in California

Parameter	Data
crew	no
length	4.57 m
span	21.03 m
height	1.06 m
Empty mass	1980 kg
Max. Takeoff mass	3855 kg
Top speed	460 km / h
Service ceiling	approx. 13,500 m
Use radius	925 km
Max. Duration of use	more than 8 h
Engine	a Williams-Rolls FJ44-1A turbofan engine with approx. 8.5 kN thrust
Armament	no

Trivia

• In the thriller novel Under the Sign of the Dragon by the American writer Tom Clancy , the US armed forces use several DarkStar -type drones to provide the newly formed NATO ally Russia, which is at war with the People's Republic of China , with qualitatively to provide high quality real-time aerial imagery. This gives the allies a crucial strategic advantage and ultimately ensures the defeat of the Chinese People's Liberation Army and the end of the conflict.
• The drones used in this novel are named after famous actresses. One drone is called Marilyn Monroe by its operators , another Ingrid Bergman , a third Grace Kelly .

Web links

Commons : RQ-3 Dark Star  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files

• FAS.org - RQ-3A DarkStar Tier III Minus

Individual evidence

1. ↑ AviationWeek - A Classified Lockheed Martin Unmanned Reconnaissance Aircraft Was Used in Iraq  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , July 6, 2003