An USAF Northrop Grumman RQ-4B (callsign FORTE10 – registration 10-2043 not confirmed) departed this afternoon from NAS Sigonella, Sicily, is making a usual surveillance mission over eastern Ukraine flying at 50,000 ft.
The Global Hawk is used by USAF as a High-Altitude Long Endurance platform covering the spectrum of intelligence collection capability to support forces in worldwide military operations.
From NAS Sigonella Global Hawks make surveillance mission over eastern Ukraine and over Black Sea (off Crimea) but also around Russian enclave of Kaliningrad or over Libya.