Air Force to Bring UAV Mission to Texas Air Guard

AIR FORCE TO BRING UAV MISSION TO TEXAS AIR GUARD

Move is part of the Air Force's Future Total Force Implementation Plan

Thursday, December 2, 2004

WASHINGTON - The United States Air Force on Wednesday announced that it will integrate National Guard and Reserve units into its Predator Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) program as part of its global operations. Texas and Arizona were chosen to host the new missions, citing those states' "low air traffic, good weather (limited icing conditions), and expansive ranges." The Predators will be operated by the Texas and Arizona Air National Guards. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the decision would benefit border security, national defense, and the state's military facilities.

"Texas is an excellent location for these new missions. I'm confident that the decision will benefit our border and homeland security, and our nation's overall defense needs," Cornyn said. "In my conversations with top Air Force commanders, I emphasized that Texas is ideally suited for the nation's defense and homeland security needs, with open air space, land, good weather and strong community support. It's important that we continue to transform our military to meet the needs of the 21st Century as we continue fighting the global war on terror and defending the homeland."

The move is part of the Air Force's Future Total Force (FTF) Implementation Plan, a series of initiatives designed to help meet the challenges of modern warfare, and new global threats. The UAV missions in Texas and Arizona are part of the FTF Test Case Initiative, a program aimed at testing new organizational efforts to integrate Reserve and Guard units in nearly every aspect of active duty operations. Basing the UAV mission in Texas and Arizona will provide the ability to support missions overseas from stateside locations. The Air Force plans to have initial operating capabilities on or before June 2006. The Air Force has not yet determined where the program will be based within Texas.

Sen. Cornyn met with Air Force Vice Chief of Staff Gen. T. Michael "Buzz" Moseley last month to discuss the upcoming BRAC round and to highlight all that Texas has to offer for military facilities. The meeting was part of an ongoing effort to communicate to senior Pentagon officials on behalf of the state's facilities and infrastructure. Those benefits were mentioned by the Air Force as part of their reason for bringing these new missions to Texas and Arizona.

The Predator is a medium altitude unmanned aircraft system capable of sustained flight times. It is used primarily for surveillance and reconnaissance missions. Imagery sources used on UAVs include synthetic aperture radar, video cameras and forward looking infra-red (FLIR). Telemetry from the vehicles can be used and distributed in real time, and used by troops, commanders or remote units anywhere around the world via secure satellite communication links.

Within the Armed Services Committee, Cornyn also serves on the subcommittees for Emerging Threats and Capabilities, Personnel, and the Strategic Subcommittee. He has visited every active duty military installation in Texas and meets regularly with community groups from military areas in his Washington office.