Tallil’s Predators on patrol in Iraq

af.mil thru DoD ^ | 9/2/2003 | 1st Lt. Daniel DuBois 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Tallil’s Predators on patrol in Iraq

	TALLIL AIR BASE, Iraq -- A 64th Expeditionary Reconniassance Squadron airman guides a Predator unmanned aerial vehicle into its hangar here following a mission. The Predators roam the skies of Iraq providing real-time information to commanders around the world. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Robert Grande)

by 1st Lt. Daniel DuBois
332nd Air Expeditionary Wing Public Affairs

9/2/2003 - TALLIL AIR BASE, Iraq (AFPN) -- Information. Today, it may be the world’s hottest commodity. It is often the key to success in all walks of life: sports, business and definitely, in the military.

The MQ/RQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicle has been providing information to the military since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom. However, the military wants more than information; it wants information superiority.

The Air Force defines it as the control and exploitation of the information domain. It allows the military to engage any target, anywhere in the world. The Predator has been vital to the military obtaining that information superiority during OIF, officials said.

“The Predator has become a force multiplier,” said Maj. Scott Start, commander of the 64th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron.

According to Start, the Predator has a 600-mile range, 20-hour mission time, and television, infrared and radar sensors. It delivers real-time information, enhancing time-sensitive targeting and battle-damage assessment.

“The Predator has brought us into a new arena of increased awareness in evaluating theater threats and reducing response time to engage enemy activity,” Start said. “Better intelligence, better awareness and more effective war fighting translates into coalition lives saved.”

Air Force Secretary Dr. James G. Roche gave an example of another way the Predator creates effects on the battlefield.

According to Roche, the Predator flew into Baghdad very quietly, so as not to be detected. It located the main Iraqi TV antenna and generator, and destroyed both with a Hellfire missile.

But the Predator was not always part of the Air Force arsenal.

During Desert Storm, near real-time imagery was in short supply, said Capt. Jon Hodge, 64th ERS director of operations. Hodge served as a B-52 Stratofortress pilot during the 1991 Gulf War.

“On my B-52 missions, after six hours of flight en route to a target, we had next to nothing added to the preflight briefing eight hours earlier,” Hodge said. “In flight, we were lucky to have voice updates.”

Hodge explained that the Predator now provides live video directly to commanders and cockpits in every phase of the mission. The effects upon battle-damage assessment are dramatic. They replace long waits, coming so quickly that the original striker could re-attack.

This instant information ultimately leads to a competitive advantage over the enemy – information superiority. The Predator has been a key player throughout OIF in giving American troops information superiority and will continue to do so in the future, he said.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

8 Unapologetically Pro-Coalition News Links and Articles

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Predator aiding the best military in the world, ping!

If you want on or off my pro-Coalition ping list, please Freepmail me.

[McGavin999]

They should be using this to patrol the borders. It would be perfect.

[Ragtime Cowgirl]

Ping!

[Valin]

During Desert Storm, near real-time imagery was in short supply, said Capt. Jon Hodge, 64th ERS director of operations. Hodge served as a B-52 Stratofortress pilot during the 1991 Gulf War.

“On my B-52 missions, after six hours of flight en route to a target, we had next to nothing added to the preflight briefing eight hours earlier,” Hodge said. “In flight, we were lucky to have voice updates.”

Hodge explained that the Predator now provides live video directly to commanders and cockpits in every phase of the mission. The effects upon battle-damage assessment are dramatic. They replace long waits, coming so quickly that the original striker could re-attack.

This instant information ultimately leads to a competitive advantage over the enemy – information superiority. The Predator has been a key player throughout OIF in giving American troops information superiority and will continue to do so in the future, he said.


What a difference a decade makes. Information! It's the key to transformation.
I recall reading at the start of the Afgan war Rumsfeld knew he was making head way on transformation when the army requested saddles for the spec-ops troops in Afganistan.

[VOA]

Hellfire-for-Saddam's-car Predator bump

[windchime]

The picture gives a good man to drone size comparison. In flight pictures that are usually shown don't provide that perspective.

[Alamo-Girl]

Bump!

[Grampa Dave]

The difference is not just the intel but the real time look at your targets. No need to snag/capture a message, decode it, translate it, code it again, send it to your front line people and have then decode it before acting on it.

Now we can look the bad guy right in the eye, day or night, know if he is walking, riding in an SUV or on a camel. If he is hiding, what floor of the house and what room he is in or what cave he slithered into.

[blackie]

Big Predator ... Bump!

We are winning ... the bad guys are losing!