Originally Posted by
tiddles52
I suspect the E-11 contains first generation equipment which is too large for a drone, and requires personnel sat there to operate it. Generation II then miniaturises the equipment and makes it so the operator can be sat on the ground doing his/her stuff via satcom.
He does say
Lt Col Helfrich: I don’t want to get in exact specifics, but the flight time for the Global Hawks is significantly longer than the Global Expresses, which allows you more on-orbit time with the Global Hawks. Additionally, the Global Hawks fly their orbits at higher altitudes.The E-11s still fly at very high altitude as well. Now, that’s really the differences in the airframe. The interesting thing to note is when it comes to the payload, they’re almost identical between the two platforms.
Originally Posted by
DCThumb
My understanding was that the manned option was cheaper. GH requires multiple operators, satellite time, long transits and is also weather limited. Putting the kit on a Global XRS was simple and cheap by comparison.
Makes sense - the 'manned aircraft as drone' model, similar to the reason so many Beech 350s have appeared in ISTAR roles