Pentagon could use old Cessnas as drone aircraft By Dave Moniz, USA TODAY WASHINGTON =97 Seeking to capitalize on the Pentagon's efforts to enlarge= its=20 fleet of surveillance drones, an Air Force scientist has proposed an=20 unusual plan to convert Vietnam-era Cessnas into unmanned reconnaissance=20 planes. Researchers at an Air Force test facility in Florida have told=20 Pentagon officials that they could transform antiquated O-2 "Skymaster"=20 propeller planes into drones in a matter of months, for slightly less than= =20 the cost of new unmanned aircraft. The Pentagon has been using slow-flying= =20 Air Force Predators, unmanned reconnaissance airplanes, to hover over=20 suspected terrorist strongholds and provide live pictures and battlefield= data. Since the war in Afghanistan, the military has boosted its production for=20 the $4.5 million Predator from one to two per month."If we need to have=20 more of these kinds of aircraft, it's something that could easily and=20 quickly be put into the field," says Gregory Jenkins, an Air Force=20 scientist at Eglin Air Force Base, Fla.Jenkins came up with the idea to=20 overhaul the Cessnas after pondering how the military could quickly acquire= =20 more drones to fight an expanding war on terrorism. The Air Force has about= =20 50 Predators and three of the faster, higher-flying Global Hawks, which are= =20 jet-propelled and can fly as high as 65,000 feet.Jenkins has been working=20 with a Manassas, Va., company that specializes in manufacturing unmanned=20 aircraft. Officials at Aurora Flight Sciences say the converted O-2s, which= =20 they have already test flown, would be faster, more sturdy and could carry= =20 three times as many missiles as the Predators.The Air Force recently began= =20 arming the slow-flying Predators with missiles, so they could quickly=20 attack ground targets.Jenkins says the Cessna aircraft, which have two=20 engines and can fly as fast as 200 mph, could carry up to six missiles as=20 well as smaller rockets."You would have a lot more firepower," Jenkins=20 says.The Cessnas could be converted into unmanned drones, he says, by=20 turbocharging the engines and installing satellite communication and=20 high-tech optical equipment. Jenkins says his idea is working its way through channels but so far has=20 received modest interest from the Pentagon.The military's unmanned aircraft= =20 are controlled by pilots on the ground and crews trained to fire their=20 weapons.The Predator became one of the stars of the Afghan war for its=20 ability to loiter over enemy territory around the clock while providing a=20 close-up view of the ground. By arming them with missiles, the Air Force=20 decreased the time lag between spotting and attacking a target of=20 opportunity.Known as UAVs, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, pilotless drones=20 have become a major focus for Pentagon research.The Air Force is developing= =20 a stealthy combat version that may one day fly dangerous missions attacking= =20 anti-aircraft and surface-to-air missile sites.Jenkins says the drones have= =20 proved their worth."If you have got 50 al-Qaeda guys in a hut, you can=20 shoot the hut right there," he says. The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site: Roj (Roger James) *************************************************** Trinbago site: http://www.tntisland.com ICQ: ICQ # 15836110 ICQ Pager: mailto:15836110@pager.icq.com escape email #!1 mailto:ejames@escape.ca yahoo email #2: mailto:triniroj@yahoo.com Yahoo Pager: triniroj Caribbean Brass & Soca Connection Group on Yahoo: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/caribsocabrass Caribbean Brass & Soca Connection Club Website http://www.tntisland.com/caribbeansocabrassconnection/ ******************************************************* Steel Expressions Orch http://www.escape.ca/~ejames/se/ email #1: mailto:steelexpressions@yahoo.com email #2: mailto:steelexpressions@home.com ******************************************************* The Trinbago Site of the Week: (Revellers Mas Band) http://www.revellers.com/ (Trini Revellers Mas Band) courtesy of Roj Trinbago Website & TnT Web Directory Roj's Trinbago Website: http://www.tntisland.com TnT Web Directory: http://195.224.187.36/ *********************************************************