In response to the “Global Hawk” unmanned reconnaissance aircraft belonging to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force's Misawa base crashed off Tottori Prefecture on September 15, Misawa City in Aomori Prefecture today submitted a written request to the commander of the Misawa Air Base and the director of Japan's Tohoku Defense Bureau to investigate the cause of the accident and suspend the operation and flight of the relevant drones until the cause is discovered. Japan's Ministry of Defense has procured the “Global Hawk” since FY2015, with a total of three. The latest one was delivered in 2023, and all three were deployed at the Misawa base. The purchase cost for each is said to be 17 billion yen. The “Global Hawk” drone is a strategic long-flight unmanned reconnaissance aircraft developed by Northrop Grumman of the United States for the US military. It can be used for reconnaissance and surveillance. It can fly at high altitude for more than 30 hours, and is equipped with reconnaissance equipment such as radar, optoelectronics, and passive electronic monitoring.

In response to the “Global Hawk” unmanned reconnaissance aircraft belonging to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force's Misawa base crashed off Tottori Prefecture on September 15, Misawa City in Aomori Prefecture today submitted a written request to the commander of the Misawa Air Base and the director of Japan's Tohoku Defense Bureau to investigate the cause of the accident and suspend the operation and flight of the relevant drones until the cause is discovered. Japan's Ministry of Defense has procured the “Global Hawk” since FY2015, with a total of three. The latest one was delivered in 2023, and all three were deployed at the Misawa base. The purchase cost for each is said to be 17 billion yen. The “Global Hawk” drone is a strategic long-flight unmanned reconnaissance aircraft developed by Northrop Grumman of the United States for the US military. It can be used for reconnaissance and surveillance. It can fly at high altitude for more than 30 hours, and is equipped with reconnaissance equipment such as radar, optoelectronics, and passive electronic monitoring.