Drones to be built at Northrop Grumman

MOSS POINT, Mississippi (WALA) - THE NAVY'S NEWEST CRAFT

It can cruise at 60,000 feet for 28 hours straight. All the while, sending back real-time surveillance from high-tech sensors. The Navy calls it the Broad Area Maritime Surveillance craft, or BAMS, and the first one is being built right now by Northrop Grumman Manufacturing in Moss Point.

Captain Bob Dishman is the U.S. Navy's point man for the new program. He told FOX10 News the capabilities of the aircraft are staggering.

"From that high perch, the sensors have an incredible field of view to monitor the surface of the ocean," said Dishman.

Dishman said this aircraft can be used for many missions, from terrorist surveillance, to reconnaissance, even thwarting piracy.

"If you have BAMS overhead, you can monitor activity and you can defuse any boarding event by alerting the crew that may be developing," added Dishman.

This isn't a tiny drone. A BAMS will be about 40 feet long and have a wingspan of more than 130 feet. That's wider than a 747.

BUILDING PLANES AND CREATING JOBS

The BAMS is being built alongside its sister plane, the Air Force's Global Hawk. The Moss Point facility is also building U.S. Navy Fire Scout unmanned helicopters. This plant is just getting started and already it's providing about 60 good jobs.

Alabama Congressman Jo Bonner said as this facility grows, it will show that our area can compete in the aerospace industry.

"This is the partnership Governor Riley, Governor Barbour and others envisioned that we could have an aerospace corridor," Bonner said.

The plant manager, Bryan Mahoney, said orders for the different planes could easily keep the facility busy for 10 to 15 years.

"We don't want to be a short-term customer," Mahoney said. "We're in this to win it. We're in this for the future. We're in this to support our war fighters."

And at the same time, build an industry that is likely the future of military aviation right here on the Gulf Coast.

CURRENT MISSIONS

NOAA scientists have just begun to use the Global Hawk version of the aircraft to fly over hurricanes. One is scheduled to fly over Hurricane Earl Thursday morning.