Air Force to Strengthen Drone Program by 3,000 Airmen,

New Bases The fighting drone corps needed to cut on its

number of missions earlier this year.
An MQ-1B Predator remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) flies past an MQ-9 Reaper RPA as it taxis
within a training assignment at Creech Air Force Base on Nov. 17, 2015 in Indian Springs,
Nev.
An MQ-1B Predator remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) flies past an MQ-9 Reaper RPA as it taxis
within a training mission at Creech Air Force Base on Nov. 17, 2015 in Indian Springs, Nev.
By Paul D. Shinkman Dec. 10, 2015, at 6:51 p.m. More
The U.S. Air Force hopes to increase its drone force by as many as 3,000 airmen as it seeks
to improve its capability to run a new strain of distant and lethal warfare.
Remotely piloted aircraft "have changed the game on the battlefield with their continuity and
ability to both build situational awareness and shut the kill chain," said Gen. Herbert "Hawk"
Carlisle, head of Air Combat Command.
An RQ-1 Predator taxies in at Balad Air Base in Iraq, on Sept. 15, 2004.
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The Air Force is working on plans to double the variety of squadrons for drones, and to
create headquarters about them in locations apart from the principal heart at Creech Air
Force Base in Nevada, to comprise potentially foreign drone bases. The service expects
these moves, as well as creating more clear career courses for analysts drone pilots as well
as other support staff, would make joining the drone corps more attractive and socially.
"We have formed a decision, much like we did on the nuclear business, that we must change
more resources," Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James tells U.S. News. "This represents
a prioritization of it."
Severe strains on those that fly and maintain drones pushed the Air Force to cut on the
number of global combat air patrols - CAPS - it was flying from 65 to 60 before this year. The
newest moves are designed to bring back the drone force and prepare it for future military
requirements. Tension on the drone and educator cadre of about 1,200 allows for the Air
Force to train only 180 pilots each year, instead of the 300 per annum it'd need to satisfy its
present mission requirement, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh said in July.
click here now The Air Force started using civilian contractors in recent months as a means
to facilitate the weight, but nonetheless discovered it was losing airmen who grew tired of the
pace demanded of them or the places where they needed to work, or who believed they
didn't have a clear career path by remaining with drones. Military regulations say civilians

might not engage in armed conflict, which might include a drone strike. The Air Force says its
civilian missions are limited to surveillance and intelligence gathering.
James says as it looks for ways to meet the requirement for drones, the additional airmen
would likely not account for any reduction in the Air Force's reliance on civilian contractors.
"This is an increasing field," she says. "One reason why we've found ourselves in a bit of a
pickle here is that every time we think we are aware of exactly what the requirement is for the
[remotely piloted aircraft] field, the demand goes up."
This new strategy is based on a survey the Air Force ran of 2,500 people, including active
duty airmen, analysts and budget planners. Carlisle said it'll permit the Air Force to continue
and strengthen its drone capacities.
http://community.swnews4u.com/blogs/detail/242/ [READ: Military Stalls on Attempts to
Repair Drone Pilots Troubles]
The drone program has come under massive public inspection amid the apparatus' use in
Afghanistan and Iraq, against increasingly global and the Islamic State group. Critics
continue to express concern they make killing not too difficult, while the physical and
emotional cost on operators has left some wondering whether it's a worthwhile job.
An advisor with the Air Force Office of the Surgeon General told U.S. News earlier this year
that the service's attempts to lower rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and "chronic
distress" had stalled, after finding some progress between 2010 and 2012, when it first
started analyzing these dilemmas. The greatest concern among these pilots and airmen,
however, was whether they might receive any support from the service to facilitate the
rigorous pace of the work.