About that Iranian SAM that took out the drone
What I'm hearing from friends who work at the Pentagon is that no one thought the Iranians had the capability to destroy such a high-tech aircraft. It came as a shock, and raised the question: what else do the Iranians have in their arsenal we don't know about? And that, more than anything, is what convinced Trump to call off the strike. He could have started a war that would not end well - for the United States. And the United States, as we all know, prefers to attack countries that won't or can't hit back (Iraq, Afghanistan... ).
= new reply since forum marked as read
I reckon I've been around DoD types too long 
Altitude 81,000 feet. (Officially)
Mach 3.5. (Officially)
They could outrun and out-altitude anything the Sovs tried.
It was an amazing piece of tech and engineering.
And to think, it was produced in 1962.
Stealthy black and faster than anything on the planet.
During an airshow at Offutt in the early 70's I spoke to a pilot who had just flown in a Blackbird for the show.
I asked how fast and all he would say that he had had lunch in Europe.
LA: Aspen two zero we show at 1,992 knots across the ground.
A 20: LA we show closer to 2,000.
And at that moment we became a team.
Speed = Mach 4+
Range = 50+ km
Altitude = 30 km
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_Republic_of_Iran_Air_Defense_Force
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https://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-usa-security-erdogan/us-redoubles-sanctions-threat-over-s-400-as-erdogan-vows-retaliation-idUSKCN1TL1F8
ISTANBUL/BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The U.S. government on Thursday said economic sanctions over Turkey’s planned purchase of a Russian missile defense system remained a “very viable” option, even as Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan vowed to retaliate if that occurred.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Clarke Cooper told reporters on a teleconference that the United States and other NATO allies remained in discussions with Turkey about resolving the dispute.
“Seeking resolution is still within the realm of possible today, but imposition of sanctions remains a course of action and a very viable one at this point,” Cooper said during a visit to Brussels, where NATO is headquartered.
In Istanbul, Erdogan, speaking at a rare news conference for foreign media, repeated that the purchase of Russian S-400 systems was a done deal and said the United States should think carefully before imposing sanctions on a NATO member.
“I do not see any possibility of these sanctions happening,” Erdogan said. However, if they did, “we will have sanctions of our own.”
Washington has repeatedly threatened to impose sanctions unless Ankara backs down from the S-400 purchase. Erdogan said the delivery of the system would start in the first half of July.
snip
US Warns India Over S-400 Air Defense System Deal With Russia
A senior U.S. diplomat warned India over procuring S-400 air defense systems from Russia in a recent congressional testimony.
https://thediplomat.com/2019/06/us-warns-india-over-s-400-air-defense-system-deal-with-russia/
A senior U.S. diplomat in a recent congressional testimony expressed deep concerns over India’s decision to procure five squadrons of Russian-made Almaz-Antei S-400 Triumf air defense systems (NATO reporting name: SA-21 Growler) for service in the Indian Air Force (IAF).
U.S. Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asia Alice Wells said in an official testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on June 13 that the purchase of the S-400 defense systems could limit burgeoning India-U.S. military relations.
The induction of the new long-range air defense systems “effectively could limit India’s ability to increase our own interoperability,” according to Wells, adding that the United States has “serious concerns” about the long-term strategic implications of the purchase for U.S.-India ties. “At a certain point, a strategic choice has to be made about partnerships and a strategic choice about what weapons systems and platforms a country is going to adopt,” Wells said.
India and Russia signed a $5 billion contract for the procurement of five S-400 squadrons during last year’s annual bilateral summit held in New Delhi in early October. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin presided over the signing ceremony. The first S-400 squadron is expected to be stood up by the fall of 2020.
The Modi government has persisted in its decision to purchase the Russian-made S-400s despite strong opposition from the United States and the possible imposition of economic sanctions on India under U.S. legislation known as the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). The legislation seeks to economically and financially punish countries engaging in “significant transactions”–defined as any deals above $15 million–with the Russian state-owned defense industry.
snip
The Global hawk isn't a stealth bird and the Iranian Raad air defense system can reach up to 75,000ft.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raad_(air_defense_system)
The Hawk has some jamming capability but that doesn't always do the trick.
" To improve survivability, the Global Hawk is fitted with a Raytheon developed AN/ALR-89 self-protection suite consisting of the AN/AVR-3 Laser warning receiver, AN/APR-49 Radar warning receiver and a jamming system. An ALE-50 towed decoy also aids in the deception of enemy air defenses."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northrop_Grumman_RQ-4_Global_Hawk
Doesn't say if it flies with the ALE-50 every time.
It is not a small UAV:
