A newly released video shows RQ-170 Sentinels at Creech Air Force Base, also offering a rare size comparison with an MQ-9 Reaper and nearby trucks.
Less than two weeks after the images and video of the mysterious Dorito-shaped plane flying late at night near Area 51, Anders Otteson, the famous author of the popular Strange Expeditions YouTube Channelreleased an interesting new video offering a close look at the RQ-170 nest located at Creech Air Force Base, Nevada. The plane recently returned to the spotlight during Operation Absolute Resolve, when it oversaw the capture of Venezuelan President Maduro.
While US officials did not explicitly name the RQ-170 among the assets involved in the operation, videos quickly emerged showing the plane landing in Puerto Rico as the assets involved were recovered. Almost a month later, on January 29, 2026, Lockheed Martin CEO Jim Taiclet, during a quarterly earnings call, confirmed that the stealth drone was indeed involved in the Operation to capture Maduro.
The video
As we explained in a previous report here at The aviationist, Otteson routinely sets up camps in remote, little-known locations with the specific goal of documenting activities that the public rarely sees. In his most recent clip, Anders established a position on public land near Indian Springs, on the south side of Creech AFB.
Multiple MQ-9A Reaper Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) are immediately visible during ground operations. In fact, Creech is home to the 432nd Wing, the U.S. Air Force’s first unit dedicated to drones; the base primarily houses the MQ-9A Reaper.
Therefore, it is not surprising to see numerous Reapers preparing for flight or parked on the ramp while being attended to by maintenance teams. Notably, the first MQ-9 observed had a black tail, repainted in 2023 to represent the Reaper Aircraft Maintenance Unit, and also carried an inert GBU-38 joint direct attack munition (JDAM) under its wing.
Creech makes extensive use of the large training spaces provided by the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR). The base’s position, isolated and surrounded by restricted and high-security airspace, makes it ideal for a secret platform: the RQ-170A Sentinel.
Official details on the RQ-170 are limited, but the fleet is estimated to comprise between 20 and 30 aircraft. These are operated by the 30th and 44th Reconnaissance Squadrons, both assigned to the 432nd Operations Group of the 432nd Wing.
The existence of the “Beast of Kandahar”, as it was nicknamed after the first sightings during a deployment to Afghanistan in 2007, was first recognized by the US Air Force in 2009. However, the RQ-170 remains a very elusive platform to this day. Needless to say, as expected considering Otteson was observing operations at the secret drone base, the RQ-170 appeared in the new video.
“I was watching the Reapers take off and land for most of the day from a hill across the road from Creech,” Anders told us. “Later, I noticed that one of the large hangars behind the Reapers, on the north side of the base, was open and I could make out the slim profile of an RQ-170 in front. The crews working around it and the other aircraft really gave a good idea of the scale of how small the aircraft is.”
“Not long after, the second one landed and taxied into the hangar. I walked around the hills a bit to try to get an unobstructed view directly into that hangar and luckily I was able to see inside for a few minutes while the lighting was good and the door was open. There were three RQ-170s inside,” he continues.
Notably, inside the hangar, a banner with the Skunk Works logo can be seen on the wall, below the American flag. In fact, the RQ-170 is one of many advanced platforms built by Lockheed Martin’s secretive division.
A “pocket” drone
The dimensions of the RQ-170 are among the unconfirmed details of this platform, with various figures available from different sources. The US Air Force, which operates the drone, only published a brief fact sheet years ago, without including specifications.
The only official source so far seems to be a US Army Aircraft Visual Reconnaissance Training Manual. This manual, dated May 2017, lists a length of 4.5 m (14 ft 9 in) and a wingspan of 19.99 m (65 ft 7 in).
These dimensions would bring the wingspan of the MQ-9A closer, which is 66 feet (20.12 m). However, the proportions of the RQ-170 do not match, indicating a smaller wingspan, as also confirmed by satellite images of the RQ-170 next to an MQ-9 at Creech AFB, with estimates of 38 feet (11.58 m) appearing to be closer.
The different dimensions are easy to visualize in Ander’s video, starting with the close encounter on the taxiway where the RQ-170 and MQ-9 clashed. It can be clearly seen that the Sentinel’s wingspan is much shorter than that of the Reaper.
Another glimpse of the secret plane’s dimensions can be captured as ground crew tend to the drone during towing operations. A pickup truck can also be seen easily towing the plane, the length of which appears comparable to that of the truck itself (possibly a Ford F250 Super Duty with a minimum length of 231.8 inches or 5.89 m).
As for the height, the nearby staff helps to get a good idea. Some estimates available online mention a possible height of approximately 6 feet (1.8 m), which appears to be largely correct, judging by the video.
Still in the shadows two decades later
Viewed from this perspective, the newly released images from Creech AFB add an important piece to the still fragmentary public image of the RQ-170 Sentinel, a platform that has remained largely in the shadows since its first appearance nearly two decades ago. As we have detailed in several previous reports here at The aviationistThe RQ-170 occupies a unique niche within the US Air Force inventory as one of the first operational low-visibility drones designed specifically for high-end intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.
Since the first sightings in 2007, the Sentinel has become emblematic of a generation of stealth unmanned aerial vehicles that bridged the gap between conventional RPAs like the MQ-9 Reaper and more advanced and still classified systems like the RQ-180. Its flying wing configuration, compact dimensions and low observability point to a design optimized to penetrate or closely monitor contested airspace while minimizing the risk of detection, without the long endurance of the MQ-9 or RQ-4.
Previous images we covered here on The aviationist have shown the aircraft operating from a small number of highly controlled locations away from public scrutiny, such as the NTTR and Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California. The new video is therefore valuable because it offers a rare glimpse into the Sentinel’s physical scale, daily operations, and coexistence with more familiar platforms like the MQ-9A Reaper.
While it does not reveal sensitive details that could be subject to operational security (OPSEC), the images contribute to a more concrete understanding of a system that today still remains officially largely undocumented, but which continues to represent an important milestone in the evolution of unmanned stealth aviation.
We strongly recommend our readers to consult the Strange Expeditions YouTube Channel to see the full video as well as his other adventures. Be sure to follow Anders on Instagram as well. here.
