This morning around 07:30 CEST a NATO Northrop Grumman RQ-4D “Phoenix” (reg. MM-AV-SA0018 – callsign MAGMAxxx) left Sigonella AB to carry out a new surveillance mission over the Black Sea.
The drone’s sensors use Ground Moving Target Indicator (GMTI) and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to image facilities and monitor moving vehicles across the area of operation. The data collected during the flights is relayed to the AGS Force Processing, Exploitation and Dissemination (PED) centre at Sigonella, where experts then process and fuse it with other products to create comprehensive and thorough intelligence products. These are forwarded to higher NATO headquarters and available to all Allies.