An indication of the importance of Unmanned Aerial Aircraft (UAVs) to the world's dominant military airpower emerged on June 15th when United States Air Force officials highlighted how 2009 was set to see more military personnel trained to fly them than to fly conventional air force combat jets.

Future UAV Designs

The USAF is integrating UAVs into its fleet more and more, and this trend is set to continue into future years. According to the newly-issued Unmanned Systems Update document, a comprehensive programme of future UAV designs is planned, though which pilotless fighter, bomber and air-refuelling aircraft will be developed and put into service. The document adds that these UAVs would function in tandem with conventional, piloted types.

Earlier this week, Lieutenant General Stanley McChrystal - head of allied forces in Afghanistan - highlighted the benefits of UAVs to members of the US senate, telling them how airstrikes could be carried out more precisely and, thus, fewer civilian deaths caused than those associated with standard aircraft.

Reaper, Predator Drones

Overall, the USAF will provide UAV training to 240 military personnel this year - all of them destined to navigate the Reaper or Predator drones across the skies. By way of contrast, fighter and bomber training will be given to 214 members of the US armed forces. As things stand, 550 UAV pilots currently serve with the air arm, against 4,600 fighter/ bomber pilots of types like the F-22 Raptor, F-16 Fighting Falcon and B-52 Stratofortress aircraft.

Besides with the USAF, the Reaper drone is also in service with the Royal Air Force, who have used it against insurgent forces in Afghanistan, while USAF Reapers have been active in Iraq. Another type of UAV is the Lockheed Martin Desert Hawk III, which Armed Forces International recently profiled in-depth.

Aerial Surveillance Platforms

The USAF's focus on UAVs mirrors the requirement for aerial surveillance platforms to operate around the clock in conflict zones like Afghanistan and Iraq.

"The capability provided by the unmanned aircraft is game-changing", USAF chief of staff, General, Norton Schwartz, stated in an email sent to newspaper USA Today. "We can have eyes 24/7 on our adversaries.

"The importance of that is clear in the feedback from the ground troops - this is a capability they don't want to be without."

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