Northrop Grumman RQ-180

The Northrop Grumman RQ-180 is an American stealth unmanned aerial vehicle intended for surveillance in contested airspace. The United States Air Force has not officially confirmed it as of 2026, but evidence points to its existence and to regular front-line use. It was designed to fill the mission once flown by the high-speed SR-71, retired in 1999, and appears to follow the Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems project cancelled in 2005. Aviation Week and Space Technology unmasked the programme in a cover story of 6 December 2013. Northrop Grumman is believed to have won a development contract in 2008 after defeating Boeing and Lockheed Martin in a competition, and the aircraft reportedly made its first flight on 3 August 2010, with the first production aircraft entering service in January 2017. The RQ designation marks it as unmanned and unarmed. Much of what is known is reported or inferred rather than officially stated.