American electronic equipment categories for reference:
AN/AL
Q-xxx (Multipurpose/Special)
AN/AL
R-xxx (Receiver)
AN/AL
T-xxx (Transmitter)
An aircraft that is equipped and optimized for
SEAD missions will tick all of the categories and/or will be very strong in the AN/AL
Q-xxx category particularly. For example:
An aircraft that is equipped and optimized for
SEAD missions will have the capacity to detect/spoof/jam/disrupt an A2/AD system and subject it to HARM strikes from considerable distances.
Global Hawk series is equipped with AN/AL
R-89 self-protection suite at maximum; this suite does
not enable
SEAD missions for the host platform. Not even close.
This:
"The Air Force has been trying to convince a skeptical Congress to allow the service to finally divest itself of most of its Global Hawk fleet. The RQ-4 can only be used over permissive airspace and has no ability to penetrate contested airspace, which is becoming a problem as the U.S. shifts its gaze from the wars of the Middle East to the Pacific theatre."
- is LITERALLY stated in 2013 in the following well-informed source:
Industry trade journal Aviation Week suggests that a new extremely stealthy long-range strategic unmanned intelligence surveillance reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft — the Northrop Grumman RQ-180 — not only exists but that it could be operational by 2015. The Aviation Week report cited only “defense...
news.usni.org
Perhaps Iran felt that shooting down an RQ-4 would be a solid marketing strategy for one of its A2/AD assets? This is not much of a kill to brag about TBH. Many countries are capable of shooting down UAVs including some of the HALE types.
See above.
Global Hawk class is very expensive due to its sheer size, high degree of automation and incredibly sophisticated ISR equipment. Some of the most expensive technologies in the world are of the ISR variety.
Shall I laugh now?
Yes, and I have adequately covered this theme in my previous response.
RQ-170 = LO-compliant design (Limited ability to penetrate contested airspace). It is optimized for ISR missions which are not advertised to increase their probability of success. There isn't much bragging about success stories in relation due to "secrecy factor."
In case you were wondering, RQ-170 is
not a proxy to VLO-compliant B-2A Spirit, F-22A Raptor and F-35 Lightning II which are designed to actively penetrate A2/AD arrangements and partake in offensive missions in contested environments. Just be glad that Iran is untouched by war since 1980s; there are numerous destructive technologies that your country will experience [only] in wartime conditions (God forbid).
RCS reduction is fairly common consideration for numerous military assets including ships since World War 1. This does not suggest that numerous military assets are LO-compliant in the true sense of the word. Global Hawk series is
not LO-compliant design in the true sense of the word for instance.
This:
"UAS are weapons systems that consist of unmanned aircraft, a data link segment, and ground control stations to control them, including human operators. Today’s UAS fly relatively slowly and are defenseless in the air. Some have reduced radar cross sections (RCS), giving them a degree of stealth. Today they are useful almost exclusively in permissive environments where the enemy has little or no ability to direct fire at them, including kinetic weapons, jamming, and cyber attacks. They are mainly employed for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR)4 and light strike missions."
- is LITERALLY stated in 2014 in the following French report:
You will find ample explanation in following thread:
https://defence.pk/pdf/threads/misconceptions-about-the-global-hawk-uav-and-vlo-concepts.675960/
There are claims and counter-claims in this matter and I won't dig into them. Since the operators of an RQ-170 variant were utilizing this UAV in broad daylight conditions over Iran on 5-12-11, Iranian defenses could notice unusual activity and do something about it (Electronic Warfare possibilities). This is sufficient credit from me to Iran.
