The Northtrop Grumman RQ-5 Hunter is an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle developed by the
Israeli company IAI Malat division and the American company Northtrop Grumman.
Out of the United States it is used in Belgium, and France (demonstration only). 75 units of the RQ-5 Hunter were built.
Description[]
The first operational drone was flown in February 1994. But after three Hunters crashed in August and September, the program was stopped in January 1996, after 56 UAVs were already built. The aircraft were stored after that and they were only used for testing. However in 1999 some Hunter UAVs were used to support NATO troops in Kosovo.
Alongside the basic derivative, the RQ-5A Hunter, there´s a MQ-5B Hunter, which is a modified derivative. Compared to the basic variant it has more advanced avionics, it has a longer wingspan ( 10.4 m ), additional fuel tanks, more powerful engines and the ability to carry on each wing a GBU-44 Viper Strike missile. The airfoil used in this aircraft is nothing but the Drela GW-27.
Another derivative with greater wingspan, the Extended Hunter, was developed but never used.
