Don't let this get hung up
LGen Steve Lucas, the CAS, spoke with the editorial board of the National Post yesterday* and expressed some enthusiasm for expanding CF capabilities with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV's):
Not to put too fine a point on it: it's about time, General. The crew operating UAV's out of KAF form an improvised unit, made up of both air force and artillery specialists. The army has taken the lead on UAV's as end-users and drivers of change, and as I understand it, certain stubborn elements within the air force establishment have been digging their heels in most of the way.
On a positive note, if the CAS has seen the light, the resistance to exploiting UAV's to their fullest potential should diminish. Given the size of our sovereign airspace, not to mention the type of operations we undertake abroad and the budgetary constraints we operate under, we'd be foolish not to pursue this technology to the limits of its effectiveness.
* And yes, I've e-mailed the NP to advise them that the team working in Kabul is actually the SAT-A (Strategic Advisory Team - Afghanistan) deployed under Op Argus, not the "Strategic Action Force." How tough is it to verify something like that before putting it in print, folks?
Unfortunately, the current Canadian UAV technology is far behind the game. According to Lt.-Gen. Lucas, our drones can stay airborne for relatively brief periods of time, and the onboard camera technology beams back footage that makes operators feel as if they're looking through a soda straw. But the air force plans to upgrade its drone technology in the near future, and Lt.- Gen. Lucas says he would like to see newer drones equipped with missiles. "UAVs are a new, essential piece in modern warfare," he said. "We need to grow with it."
Not to put too fine a point on it: it's about time, General. The crew operating UAV's out of KAF form an improvised unit, made up of both air force and artillery specialists. The army has taken the lead on UAV's as end-users and drivers of change, and as I understand it, certain stubborn elements within the air force establishment have been digging their heels in most of the way.
On a positive note, if the CAS has seen the light, the resistance to exploiting UAV's to their fullest potential should diminish. Given the size of our sovereign airspace, not to mention the type of operations we undertake abroad and the budgetary constraints we operate under, we'd be foolish not to pursue this technology to the limits of its effectiveness.
* And yes, I've e-mailed the NP to advise them that the team working in Kabul is actually the SAT-A (Strategic Advisory Team - Afghanistan) deployed under Op Argus, not the "Strategic Action Force." How tough is it to verify something like that before putting it in print, folks?
posted by Babbling Brooks at 10:46 a.m.
2 Comments:
Please! Please! Spit it out. There is only one reason Canada remains in the prehistoric chainsaw UAV technology and no amount of word selection or tap-dancing will alter the fact that the light blue boys (of which I was one) are opposed or reluctive to enter a new age ................ there are no pilots in those UAVs; hence, a lot of pilot positions down the tube. Can't have that!!
Believe it or not, I've heard that not only are pilots not the only classification to have resisted this move, they're not the worst offenders either.
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