Royal Air Force Maj. Kevin Gambold monitors and pilots an MQ-1 Predator at Ali Air Base, Iraq, Jan. 10, 2008. Photo: Airman 1st Class Jonathan Snyder/U.S. Air Force
US Needs Another 600 Humans to Fly Its Robot Planes -- Danger Room
The Pentagon doesn’t have nearly enough people to operate its growing fleet of flying robots. Right now, the US Air Force is short nearly 600 drone pilots and sensor operators. And that’s before the military carries out its plans to more than double its armada of remotely operated Reaper aircraft by 2015.
Air Force leaders have been complaining for months that their “number one manning problem … is manning our unmanned platforms.” But the generals’ gripe was seen mostly as a worry about finding intelligence analysts to watch the countless hours of surveillance video that the spy drones produce. Turns out, the Air Force also doesn’t have enough people to operate the aircrafts — or to turn and focus their cameras.
Read more ....
My Comment: I expect these numbers to only increase over time.