Observer, may enable several capabilities that enable rapid and effective actions or countermeasures: Communications relay. Durable, satellite-like, affordable communications relay with substantial bandwidth capacity can interconnect and route data in real time, enabling teams and command centers separated by topographical barriers to communicate with each other. Disaster response. Hurricane, storm tracking and general weather monitoring may be useful in evacuation planning, relief operations and first response coordination. Global Observer provides communication alternatives in the event of cell tower, microwave relay and satellite downlink failure. Maritime surveillance. Coastlines plagued by transport of illegal goods can be subject to long-term surveillance. Analysts can observe suspicious activity, determine patterns of behavior and identify threats. History A Global Observer prototype, called "Odyssey," flew in May 2005. It had a , one-third the size of the planned full-sized version, and ran solely on hydrogen fuel-cells powering electric motors that drove eight propellers, flying the aircraft for several hours. The JCTD started in September 2007. In August 2010, Aerovironment announced that the full-sized Global Observer wing had passed wing load testing. The 53 m (175 ft) all-composite wing, which comes in five sections and is designed to maximize wing strength while minimizing weight, had loads applied to it that approximated the maximum loads it is designed to withstand during normal flight, turbulence and maneuvers. In its third year of testing, the demonstrator had also undergone ground and taxi tests as well as taken a "short hop" lifting off the ground briefly during taxiing. The Global Observer performed its first flight on 5 August 2010, taking off from Edwards AFB and reaching an altitude of for one hour. The flight was performed using battery power. The aircraft completed initial flight testing, consisting of multiple low-altitude flights, at Edwards AFB in August and September 2010. This phase used batteries to power the hybrid-electric aircraft and approximate full aircraft weight and center of gravity for flight control, performance, and responsiveness evaluation. Following this, the program team installed and ground tested the aircraft's hydrogen-fueled generator and liquid hydrogen fuel tanks which will power it for up to a week in the stratosphere. The first flight of the Global Observer using hydrogen fuel occurred on 11 January 2011, reaching an altitude of for four hours. On 1 April 2011, Global Observer-1 (GO-1), the first aircraft to be completed, crashed 18 hours into its 9th test flight. AeroVironment said it was undergoing