The high-flying unmanned reconnaissance aircraft that is still under development is controlled from the ground and can operate at altitudes above 60,000 feet (18,200 meters). It can stay aloft for more than 30 hours, according to the air force.

It carries electro optical/infrared sensors and synthetic aperture radar to provide commanders with high resolution imagery covering large geographic areas.

It is also cheaper and slower than the Predator, another drone already patrolling the Afghan skies. Drones fulfil a crucial role in the scheme of military operations, filling in the blanks in intelligence by filming in virtual real time at slow speeds while staying in the skies for longer and without the risk to crew of manned flights.

Unlike the Global Hawk, the Predator RQ-1 is now armed and dangerous, loaded with Hellfire anti-tank missiles, according to the Pentagon. In fact an unmanned Predator is credited with the killing of Mohammad Atef, a top lieutenant of Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, according the New York Times.

Had the drones been weaponized a year earlier, the September 11 terrorist onslaught on the United States may never have happened. The Wall Street Journal reports that the drones had bin Laden under surveillance on more than one occasion.

"CIA drones spotted Bin Laden in camps but couldn't shoot," the paper said.

At the time bin Laden had been indicted for the 1998 bombings at two US embassies in Africa in which more than 200 people died.

The arming of the Predators suggests that next time round the Pentagon hopes there will be no mistake.

Built by General Atomics, the Predator weighs a tonne and is controlled from the ground by a team of technicians.

"They carry an electro-optical and an infrared video cameras, as well a synthetic aperture radar," the Pentagon said of the drone.

But as winter approaches, the Predator's limitations, including vulnerability to icing of the wings in cold weather, are evident.

The Pentagon admits that 19 Predators of the 60 in service have been lost, either due to enemy fire or by accident.

"We now have Global Hawk, which is a new element, and helpful because of winter weather coming and the difficulties the Predator has," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said Wednesday.

Working together the Global Hawk and the Predator can be used as part of a fast reaction strike system designed to hit targets within minutes of their being detected.

Meanwhile, The US has offered India sensors, unmanned aerial vehicles and other technical equipment to combat the inflitration of militants from Pakistan into Kashmir, the Hindu daily said Sunday.

The offer was made when Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee visited Washington earlier this month to discuss the global campaign against terrorism and the onging US-led military conflict in Afghanistan.

"If India is satisfied with the equipment, it would have the option of buying them in larger quantities to strengthen its surveillance," the report said.

If confirmed, the offer would be the first shipment of American aid to India to counter the separatist insurgency in Kashmir, where thousands have died in the last 12 years.

Indian security officials say Muslim militants periodically cross over from Pakistan into Indian-controlled Kashmir where they lend support to the armed rebellion.

New Delhi and Washington have been working together for the last two years on the broad issue of counter-terrorism.

In September, US President George W. Bush partially lifted sanctions against India and Pakistan which were imposed in May 1998 after the two countries carried out tit-for-tat nuclear weapons tests.

But the US has continued a longstanding ban on exports to India of certain strategic equipment.

However, US ambassador to India Robert D Blackwill recently said that restrictions on the sale of military supplies to India were likely be lifted following Bush's summit with Vajpayee on November 9.

He said US was looking at striking a long-term defence cooperation deal with India as the country was likely to emerge as a key security power in Asia.

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