how much flying do they actually do, takeoffs and landings and some maneuvering over the target area? i would expect the drones GPS their way to and from the target area and prolly are able to takeoff and land autonomously if required, no?
Posted on 12/19/2015 9:58:23 AM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
IRBIL, Iraq — The Air Force will allow enlisted personnel to become drone pilots for the first time to help meet demands for increased surveillance over global hot spots, according to a new policy announced Thursday.
The decision, which follows months of study, is the latest Air Force effort to overhaul the growing drone program, which has struggled to recruit and retain enough officers to serve as drone pilots.
Counterterrorism operations including the battle against Islamic State have created constant demand for aerial intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, or ISR. Drone pilots say they are overworked and badly stressed.
“This group of people have been front and center of the war effort for the past 15 years,†Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said in a recent interview. “If you talk to combatant commanders around the world, which I do regularly, and ask them, ‘What is the one more thing you need from the Air Force?’ they will always reply, ‘I want more ISR.’
â€Under the new policy, qualified enlisted personnel will be allowed to pilot the unarmed RQ-4 Global Hawk spy drone. They may eventually be permitted to operate the missile-firing MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones.“We’re going to take it one step at a time, and step one will be Global Hawk,†James said.
The Army Air Corps, predecessor to the Air Force, allowed enlisted airmen to pilot warplanes during World War II. But only officers could become pilots in more recent years, even for drones.
In fiscal year 2014, the most recent data available, the Air Force trained 180 drone pilots, and 240 veterans left the field.
James has directed Air Combat Command, which oversees drone operations, to develop a plan over the next six months to clear the way for non-officers to serve as drone pilots by next year. The study will address entry requirements, training, career path development and compensation.
The Air Force will start with Global Hawk because the high-flying jet is easier to operate. It is largely flown autonomously via computer control rather than a joystick like the Predator and Reaper.
“Remotely piloted aircraft that require more monitoring than actual hands on, such as the Global Hawk, should be considered as viable for operation by enlisted personnel,†said retired Air Force Gen. David A. Deptula, who was deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.
The Global Hawk also has a more stable training program than the Predator and Reaper. Those programs are backlogged because the Air Force lacks experienced pilots as teachers.
Global Hawk pilots train at Beale Air Force Base, about 40 miles north of Sacramento, Calif. It’s home to high-altitude spy planes, and its motto is emblazoned on signs that read, “In God We Trust. All Others We Monitor.
â€Drone pilots already complain that they are held in lower regard than traditional fighter pilots, and that allowing enlisted airmen in will only increase the stigma.
But James expressed confidence that they, and the rest of the Air Force, will adapt.
“We have great confidence in our enlisted force that they can do this job,†she said. “Times change and we learn, and we talk about strategic agility, so we have to be prepared to try new things.â€
I don't give a shit if they ARE third generation Americans ... change your name if you're REALLY gonn'a practice taquia
Navy in 1930’s and 40’s used to have enlisted pilots
known as NAP (Naval Aviation Pilot)
One squadron was known as FLYING CHIEFS
Army decided (before creation of separate air force in 1947)
decided to require all pilots be officers, Navy had to
keep pace....
About damn time!
There is nothing that requires an officer to fly a drone other than the officers wanting to save pilot-billets for their own peers...
But a drone pilot isn’t a hairy-chested knight of the air, so they relented, because they can’t fill the chairs.
Someday, we’ll have drone to manned aerial combat, and when all the hairy-chested knights all buy the farm we’ll then have drone-to-drone aerial combat.
Lots of the British Pilots and Flight Crews in WW2 were “Other Ranks” (other than commissioned / officers) and they seemed to do an adequate job!
Probably better at it as they were more than likely glued to a monitor as youts more than the upity college O types
No weapons release, easier to fly, makes sense to me.
Will Obama run a Jobs for Jihadis’ outreach program to assure a “diverse” workforce?
Drone pilots only fly the things anyway so it really isn’t a big deal. Amazon and FedEx employees are already doing that. The decisions to engage targets are made by the bastard lawyers and politicians back in Washington.
Most Army pilots are Warrant Officers, not Commissioned Officers. Some unmanned aerial vehicles are flown by Sergeants. The Air Force abolished Warrant Officers and have not allowed enlisted airmen to be pilots. The British Army still have sergeant pilots.
The Air Force position has been based on cultural and social preferences, nothing to do with technical capability.
Drone pilots only fly the things anyway so it really isn’t a big deal.
? I know plenty of rated pilots that have come out of the F-16 and B-1 communities to fly Global Hawk, Predator or Reaper.
Yep...every muslim is a security threat.
Crikey... you could give my kids a bag of Doritos and Coke and they would fly that drone up Achmed's a$$
This shows that drones are no longer cool. Flying them is no longer a status symbol, it’s just a job. Soon, officers will never fly them.
how much flying do they actually do, takeoffs and landings and some maneuvering over the target area? i would expect the drones GPS their way to and from the target area and prolly are able to takeoff and land autonomously if required, no?
Yes, The Air Force has fought it at every step. Times are a changin’
how much flying do they actually do, takeoffs and landings and some maneuvering over the target area?
Global Hawk has Auto Takeoff and Land.
After I got my wings and arrived at Cherry Point for my initial training in A-4s, my transition training was at the hand of a Master Gunnery Sergeant (E-9) Naval Aviation Pilot. 1968.
TC
the only human input required then is doing a racetrack or figure eight over the target for unarmed drones
General Yeager started out enlisted.
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