Navy Global Hawk crashes

WASHINGTON -- A Navy Global Hawk unmanned aircraft crashed in a marsh in southern Maryland on Monday after the ground pilot lost contact with the aircraft. There were no injuries and no property damage at the crash site near Salisbury. The RQ-4A Broad Area Maritime Surveillance Demonstrator (BAMS-D) was on a test mission from Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md., when contact was lost. The Navy's version of the Northrop Grumman-built Global Hawk, which can fly 11 miles up for 30 hours, is for maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission. (Sources: multiple, including Los Angeles Times, CNN, 06/11/12) Gulf Coast note: Global Hawk central fuselages are built by Northrop Grumman in Moss Point, Miss. Previous Global Hawk post.