It also has an internal weapons bay and is capable of carrying 2,000-pound missiles.

Despite being labeled a test aircraft, the
order for the Avenger came in response to an urgent request made by
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in early 2011. The Avenger was the only aircraft that met the Defense Department's needs on such short notice, the Air Force Times reported, citing a heavily redacted document posted on the Federal Business Opportunities website.

Wired's Danger Room blog speculates that the drone may be used not in Afghanistan but for further missions in Iran, given its stealth capabilities and large weapons payload.

“The Avenger reportedly carries a
ground-mapping radar and the same ultra-sophisticated cameras as the
F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, making it a perfect candidate for quietly
snooping above, say, suspected nuclear facilities or terrorist camps
guarded by air-defense radars and missiles,” wrote Danger Room’s David
Axe.

"The Pentagon wants more North Atlantic Treaty
Organization members to have such pilotless aircraft to ease the burden
on the US in Afghanistan and in future conflicts like the alliance's air
campaign in Libya this year," Obama Administration officials were
quoted by The Wall Street Journal as saying.


It is believed that India would be one of the potential target countries for the US to sell its drones.

India has been purchasing drones from Israel for quite some time now,
and has been developing its drone capabilities, but does not have armed
drones like the Predators and Reapers used by US security agencies with
devastating effect against al-Qaeda and Taliban targets.

"The Pentagon's proposed sales have set off a behind-the-scenes debate
between the administration and some members of Congress over whether the
US should speed the spread of a technology that will allow other