Focus on NAS Sigonella: What is the status of the US Global Hawk and Triton fleet in Sicily?

In light of what happened yesterday, April 9, 2026, with a US Navy MQ-4C Triton suddenly disappearing from major flight tracking sites while on an operational flight, we tried to take stock of the situation regarding the High Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) unmanned aerial assets deployed by the United States at NAS Sigonella, Sicily.

A necessary premise: the data presented in this article is extrapolated from tracks made public by major flight-tracking websites. Therefore, relying exclusively on active transponders and routes intercepted by civilian receivers, this analysis cannot and does not claim to be entirely exhaustive, as military aircraft often operate with their transponders turned off for obvious security reasons.

A Strategic Hub for the USAF and US Navy

NAS Sigonella remains a crucial hub for American Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) operations across three main theaters: the Mediterranean, NATO’s Eastern flank (up to the Baltic and Black Seas), and the Middle East.

To cover these vast areas, the Sicilian base hosts two different variants of the same Northrop Grumman drone “family”: the Global Hawks (RQ-4B) operated by the US Air Force and the Tritons (MQ-4C) operated by the US Navy.

Based on recently tracked movements, we can state that there are currently (or at least until yesterday) at least 4 assets of this type permanently based at the Sicilian airport.

The USAF Component: The Global Hawks (RQ-4B)

The US Air Force drones based at Sigonella are primarily deployed for monitoring the European front and the Black Sea basin, with missions that often approach 24 hours of continuous flight. Currently, the following appear to be operational:

• Reg. 11-2046: Its last flight recorded by tracking sites dates back to February 2, 2026. On that occasion, the asset was engaged in a lengthy surveillance mission over the Black Sea.
• Reg. 09-2039: The last visible track dates back to February 21, 2026. The aircraft carried out a monitoring mission along the entire Eastern flank of the Atlantic Alliance, pushing north into Estonian airspace before returning to Sicily.

The US Navy Component: The Tritons (MQ-4C)

The Navy’s Tritons, specialized in maritime surveillance, have recently shown a strong focus on the Middle Eastern quadrant. Currently, the tracked aircraft are:

• Reg. 169661: Last recorded flight on March 21, 2026. The track showed it engaged in a patrol mission over the waters of the Persian Gulf.
• Reg. 169804 (The “missing” drone): This is the asset at the center of yesterday’s mystery, April 9, 2026. After taking off from Sigonella for a mission over the Persian Gulf, the signal was lost by civilian radars and, to date, the aircraft does not appear to have returned to the Sicilian base. It remains to be seen whether it landed at an alternative base (in the Middle Eastern quadrant) or if other dynamics were involved. We will continue to monitor the situation.

Historical Rotations

The fleet stationed in Sicily undergoes regular technical and operational rotations. As proof of this, it is worth remembering that one of Sigonella’s “historical” Global Hawks, the aircraft with registration 10-2045 (which we have tracked countless times in the skies over the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe), concluded its Italian deployment and returned permanently to the United States on May 7, 2025.