"North Korea Testing Large Drone Modeled After US Global Hawk"

North Korea is reportedly testing a large high-altitude unmanned reconnaissance aircraft modeled after the U.S. unmanned reconnaissance drone 'Global Hawk (RQ-4),' according to NK News, a North Korea-focused media outlet in the U.S., on the 20th (local time).

(Pyongyang, Korean Central News Agency=Yonhap News) Kim Jong Un, Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, toured unmanned reconnaissance drones at a weapons exhibition with a Russian military delegation visiting North Korea. 2023.7.27

NK News stated that analysis of high-resolution images from the commercial satellite service 'Planet Labs' revealed a new unmanned aerial vehicle outside the hangar at Banghyon Air Force Base in North Korea. While the wingspan of the existing unmanned reconnaissance drone modeled after the Global Hawk was 35 meters, this new model has increased to 40 meters. The color of the aircraft is also similar to that of the Global Hawk.

The Global Hawk is an intelligence satellite-level unmanned reconnaissance drone capable of identifying objects as small as 0.3 meters on the ground using high-performance radar and infrared detection equipment from an altitude of 20 km. Its operational range is 3,000 km, and its flight duration lasts between 38 to 42 hours.

North Korea carried out roof installation work on seven hangars at Banghyon Air Force Base from the 14th to the 17th of this month. Using vertically opening doors allows accommodation of the new unmanned reconnaissance drone with a wingspan of 40 meters. This has led to interpretations that the roof installation work was initiated to expedite the deployment of the drone currently under testing. The U.S. also has hangars of similar size that accommodate the Global Hawk.

Kim Jong-un, Chairman of the State Affairs Commission of North Korea, announced the development of North Korean-style unmanned reconnaissance and attack drones at the 8th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea in January 2021. Since then, North Korea has possessed not only unmanned reconnaissance drones but also unmanned attack drones such as the North Korean version of the 'Reaper,' called 'Saetbyeol-9' and 'Saetbyeol-4.' The unmanned attack drones were spotted at Banghyon Air Force Base through satellite images in September 2022 and appeared in the 2023 military parade. However, because the appearance of North Korean drones closely resembles U.S. drones, there are speculations that the design plans were obtained without authorization and copied.