Technological tools par excellence, operational UAVs have redefined the way operations are conducted. This article, a brief survey of the UAVs used in Afghanistan by the French Army, indicates how necessary they will be in future as well as present conflicts.
UAV's in Afghanistan: the Necessary Complementarity of Vectors
‘We must adopt a global approach to intelligence, from the strategic to the tactical level.’
Presentation by General Jean-Louis Georgelin on 2 March 2009 in the Palais du Luxembourg
during the symposium ‘Knowledge and Anticipation’.
The SDTI(1) tactical UAVs of the 61st Artillery Regiment (Chaumont) and the French Air Force’s operational UAV Harfang (name given to the SIDM(2)) have been operating in parallel in Afghan skies since February 2009. France has thus joined the small circle of nations able to field a full range of UAVs in operations. Our forces are thus bringing to fruition the long procurement process of a major operational capability associated with the Knowledge and Anticipation strategic task, a capability that is inseparable from the conduct of contemporary military operations.
The Broad Family of UAVs(3)
In addition to remotely controlled vehicles and their sensors, a UAV system also includes ground stations for vehicle control and intelligence analysis as well as a communications system. The spectrum of tasks assigned to reconnaissance UAVs(4) during intelligence-gathering missions (surveillance, identification) and in direct support of operations is very broad and continually expanding in the wake of technological innovations: battlefield surveillance, radio relay, radar signal detection, guidance for troops on the ground, target designation and destruction in certain cases (UCAV), etc.
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