Under the previously announced Engineering and Manufacturing Development Phase II (EMD) contract, Aurora designed and fabricated tooling for the new aircraft's aft fuselage, vertical tails and engine nacelle components.

Delivery of the first aft fuselage is a major milestone for the RQ-4B program and validates Aurora's tool development process.

"The aft fuselage is a critical path item for the RQ-4B, and being the lead on this component assembly shows how Aurora has matured as a company," said Aurora Flight Sciences President John Langford.

"When Aurora started our Global Hawk work in 1995, we were a scrappy small company. Over the past 10 years, we have developed the mature design and manufacturing capabilities and experienced staff that make it possible to lead a critical project like the aft fuselage."

Since 1995, when the company received its first subcontract to build vertical tails for the RQ-4A, Aurora Flight Sciences has been a key member of the Global Hawk team.

Over the years, Aurora increased the scope of its Global Hawk work. Today the company manufactures almost one-third of each Global Hawk fuselage assembly.

"The value of the data Global Hawk provides to commanders is critical to the ongoing war on terrorism," said Tom Williams sector vice president for Northrop Grumman's High Altitude, Long Endurance programs.

"The block 0 systems deployed today continue to demonstrate extremely high availability rates and effectiveness levels. This level of performance is remarkable considering the current Global Hawks are Advanced Concept Demonstrator systems.

"The know-how, dedication and ability to deliver quality products demonstrated by subcontractors like Aurora Flight Sciences make it possible to put such a powerful tool in the hands of America's fighting men and women."

Despite Aurora's Global Hawk experience, the scope of the EMD contract was daunting. Employees at Aurora's Bridgeport, WV manufacturing facility designed and manufactured tooling for the 120 different components that make up the aft fuselage.

After the tooling was complete, Aurora fabricated each of the components and devised an assembly plan for the aft fuselage.

The assembly process worked exactly as planned, and Aurora's technicians are already applying lessons learned from the first assembly to further streamline the aft fuselage assembly process for subsequent RQ-4Bs.

The new RQ-4B Global Hawk is larger than the currently deployed block 0 systems, carries 50% more payload and provides two and a half times the available onboard power for sensor systems. The RQ-4B is expected to make its first flight in 2006.

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