Digital Battlespace 
AUSA Winter 2010: US to expand aerial platform capabilities against IEDs
With the expansion of the IED threat in Afghanistan, US defense planners are preparing to enhance some of its specialized airborne surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities.
Speaking to the media at this week’s Association of the US Army (AUSA) Winter Symposium and Exposition in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Lieutenant General Michael Oates, Director, Joint Improved Explosive Device Defeat Organization (JIEDDO) observed, “There are a range of airborne surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities in theater.”
“ODIN [as an example], in an Army organization that was born in Iraq and is now also available in Afghanistan,” he explained. “It is partnered with an Air Force capability called [Project] Liberty…These are not sophisticated airborne platforms. They are a mix of unmanned aerial vehicles and fixed-wing, prop-driven airplanes that were in the inventory. What makes them unique is the sensor suites that we have onboard.”
“The sensor suites include a visual camera, full motion video, IR, EO to some extent and some sophisticated sensor suites that I won’t go into detail about because we think they are going to enable us to exploit some of the enemy’s weaknesses,” he added.
“It [the information] is provided in near real time to the ground commanders so as he is looking at an area these airborne platforms can give him a pretty good view visually and through signals intelligence and through some other technical means to discover whether the earth has been altered; whether there are devices laid along the route of march.”
“We are not where we need to be in total numbers of that capability or in degree of sophistication that we probably could use. And there [are] some capabilities that we are going to bring to theater this next year that are going to help improve that, both in total available capacity – that is more platforms so that we can see more of the area – and some new emerging technologies that might help us get after these non-metallic, fertilizer-based issues,” he said.
By Scott R. Gourley, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
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