A US Air Force drone has become the first unmanned military aircraft to land at a civilian Australian airport.
The RQ-4 Global Hawk arrived in Melbourne on Monday for the Avalon International Air Show at the weekend.
It will go on public show at Avalon Airport, giving civilian authorities a chance to see its intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.
The Global Hawk can fly day or night in all types of weather.
Royal Australian Air Force Chief Air Marshal Geoff Brown said the drone's arrival gave local authorities the chance to get up to speed on unmanned flight.
"It is the first time a military Unmanned Aerial System has been in civil airspace with a civil air traffic control service in Australia, and the first time a military UAS has landed at a civil airport," he said.
"We have a keen interest in seeing the RQ-4 up close given our recent acquisition of the MQ-4C Triton, which provides the needed capability to monitor and protect Australia's vast ocean approaches."
Colonel Art Primas, the US "air boss" at Avalon, said the close co-ordination needed to bring the Global Hawk to Australia would pay dividends.
The RAAF and civil air traffic control and aviation safety organisations have developed procedures to allow remotely piloted aircrafts to fly in civil airspace in the same way as manned aircraft.
They say the safe arrival of the RQ-4 will pave the way for safe operation of the MQ-4C Triton.
"Creating standardised procedures will enable us to work together much more effectively and efficiently during whatever missions future requirements dictate," Col Primas said.
