DRONELEDGER / Press factsheet

RQ-180 (reported programme)

A compact selection from this profile, with sources and limits. Other configurations and additional measurements remain in the full profile.

Full profile and archive

RQ-180 is the name used in Aviation Week reporting for a classified Northrop Grumman reconnaissance aircraft. IAI also describes reported US Air Force operation. These are attributed reports. Publicly verified dimensions, performance and service status are not established in the reviewed record.^[1][2]

Public-source profile. Performance claims are attributed; type links do not verify an incident identification.

Schematic top view of the general configuration. Not to scale and not an exact depiction of the model.

The numbers, with their sources

Unknown in reviewed sources

Form, sound & identification limits

Aviation Week labels its published images as concepts made with an artist. They are not photographs or measured drawings. “concept images”^[1]
IAI qualifies its account of operation. This profile leaves official service status and first flight unknown. “reportedly”^[2]

Shape or sound alone cannot identify a drone. Follow local public-safety alerts; do not approach wreckage.

Source notebook

Aviation Week · Unmasking the RQ-180 (2013)
31 Dec 2013 · Source consulted: 08 Nov 2026 · Firsthand reporting
Istituto Affari Internazionali · Above and Beyond: State of the Art of Uncrewed Combat Aerial Systems and Future Perspectives
Publication date not stated · Source consulted: 08 Nov 2026 · Approximate / analyst compilation

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Cite this profile

DroneLedger. RQ-180 (reported programme). 2026-11-08. https://droneincidents.com/drones/rq-180/editions/2026-11-08/

Our text, data and schematic drawings: CC BY 4.0, credit DroneLedger and link to the profile. Linked publications and quoted passages keep their own rights.