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69-504: [REDACTED] Look up ISTAR , Ištar , or istar in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. Istar , iSTAR , or variants, may refer to: Intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition, and reconnaissance Ištar or Ishtar, the Assyrian and Babylonian goddess of fertility, war, love, and sex Istar (Dragonlance) , a fictional city in

138-509: A 6.1-meter (20-ft) satellite dish with associated support equipment. The satellite link provides communications between the GCS and the aircraft when it is beyond line-of-sight and links to networks that disseminate secondary intelligence. The RQ-1A system can operate on a 5,000 by 75 foot (1,524 meters by 23 meters) of hard surface runway with clear line-of-sight to each end from the GCS to the air vehicles. Initially, all components needed to be located on

207-473: A Predator successfully fired three Hellfire AGM-114C missiles into a target. The newly armed Predators were given the designation of MQ-1A. In the first week of June 2001, a Hellfire missile was successfully launched on a replica of bin Laden's Afghanistan Tarnak residence built at a Nevada testing site. A missile launched from a Predator exploded inside one of the replica's rooms; it was concluded that any people in

276-489: A certificate of authorization which will allow the M/RQ-1 and M/RQ-9 aircraft to be used within U.S. civilian airspace to search for survivors of disasters. Requests had been made in 2005 for the aircraft to be used in search and rescue operations following Hurricane Katrina , but because there was no FAA authorization in place at the time, the assets were not used. The Predator's infrared camera with digitally enhanced zoom has

345-652: A decoy to draw fire away from other aircraft. Due to airborne surveillance needs after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) invaded Iraq , the Predator's retirement was delayed to 2018. MQ-1s will probably be placed in non-recoverable storage at the Boneyard and not sold to allies, although antenna, ground control stations, and other components may be salvaged for continued use on other airframes. General Atomics completed

414-682: A derivative of the GA Gnat 750 . During the ACTD phase, three systems were purchased from GA, comprising twelve aircraft and three ground control stations. From April through May 1995, the Predator ACTD aircraft were flown as a part of the Roving Sands 1995 exercises in the U.S. The exercise operations were successful which led to the decision to deploy the system to the Balkans later in the summer of 1995. During

483-660: A factor of 10. NRO "has a proven track record in [ISR]", insists one of the founders of the US Space Force, who defends the capability of the NRO over the ambition of the Space Force to take over the role of ISR. GMTI (ground moving target indicator) data is an objective for Space Force, NGA, and NRO. In July 2022, Junior (3rd year) and Senior (4th year) cadets at West Point had hands-on experience building and using drones with various tactical capabilities, guided by faculty from

552-542: A forward location, and consolidates control of the different flights in one location. The improvements in the MQ-1B production version include an ARC-210 radio, an APX-100 IFF/SIF with mode 4, a glycol-weeping "wet wings" de-icing system, upgraded turbo-charged engine, fuel injection, longer wings, dual alternators as well as other improvements. On 18 May 2006, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued

621-626: A portable hangar in a tent and a wooden taxiway to operate MQ-1s for a six-week period. The first overseas deployment took place in the Balkans , from July to November 1995, under the name Nomad Vigil . Operations were based in Gjader , Albania. Four disassembled Predators were flown into Gjadër airbase in a C-130 Hercules . The UAVs were assembled and flown first by civilian contract personnel. The U.S. deployed more than 70 military intelligence personnel. Intelligence collection missions began in 1995. One of

690-551: A similar role to the below mentioned US Marine Corps STA platoons, but on a larger scale. Used to designate one of the following: MQ-1 Predator The General Atomics MQ-1 Predator (often referred to as the Predator drone ) is an American remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) built by General Atomics that was used primarily by the United States Air Force (USAF) and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Conceived in

759-487: A tank target. Then on 21 February 2001 the Predator fired three Hellfire missiles, scoring hits on a stationary tank with all three missiles. Following the February tests, phase two involved more complex tests to hunt for simulated moving targets from greater altitudes with the more advanced AGM-114K version. The armed Predators were put into service with the designation MQ-1A. The Predator gives little warning of attack because it

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828-480: A variable aperture thermographic camera (for low light/night). Previously, Predators were equipped with a synthetic aperture radar for looking through smoke, clouds or haze, but lack of use validated its removal to reduce weight and conserve fuel. The cameras produce full motion video and the synthetic aperture radar produced still frame radar images . There is sufficient bandwidth on the datalink for two video sources to be used together, but only one video source from

897-491: A weapon strike at any time." The United States Space Force , National Reconnaissance Office (NRO), and National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) share the satellite-based ISR task as of 2021. See Space Delta 7 From 2018, the NGA has used Data transformation services (DTS), to convert raw sensor data into a format usable by its mission partners, who are government agencies whose names are classified. In light of

966-527: Is also the designator for the AGM-114 Hellfire that are carried on the MQ-1. Each Predator air vehicle can be disassembled into six modules and loaded into a container. This enables all system components and support equipment to be rapidly deployed worldwide. The largest component is the ground control station (GCS) which is designed to roll into a C-130 Hercules . The Predator primary satellite link consists of

1035-420: Is being used to track troop movements, broadcast world events in real time, and conduct war.— NHK World-Japan ISTAR is the process of integrating the intelligence process with surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance tasks in order to improve a commander's situational awareness and consequently their decision making . The inclusion of the "I" is important as it recognizes the importance of taking

1104-418: Is collected on the battlefield through systematic observation by deployed soldiers and a variety of electronic sensors. Surveillance , target acquisition and reconnaissance are methods of obtaining this information. The information is then passed to intelligence personnel for analysis, and then to the commander and their staff for the formulation of battle plans. Intelligence is processed information that

1173-572: Is currently the largest Predator squadron in the United States Air Force . U.S. Customs and Border Protection was reported in 2013 to be operating 10 Predators and to have requested 14 more. On 21 June 2009, the United States Air Force announced that it was creating a new MQ-1 squadron at Whiteman Air Force Base that would become operational by February 2011. In September 2011, the U.S. Air National Guard announced that despite current plans for budget cuts, they will continue to operate

1242-584: Is relatively quiet and the Hellfire is supersonic, so it strikes before it is heard by the target. In the winter of 2000–2001, after seeing the results of Predator reconnaissance in Afghanistan, Cofer Black , head of the CIA's Counterterrorist Center (CTC), became a vocal advocate of arming the Predator with missiles to target Osama bin Laden in country. He believed that CIA pressure and practical interest were causing

1311-575: Is relevant and contributes to an understanding of the ground, and of enemy dispositions and intents. Intelligence failures can happen. ISR is the coordinated and integrated acquisition, processing and provision of timely, accurate, relevant, coherent and assured information and intelligence to support commander's conduct of activities. Land, sea, air and space platforms have critical ISR roles in supporting operations in general. By massing ISR assets, an improved clarity and depth of knowledge can be established. ISR encompasses multiple activities related to

1380-723: The "Finder" mini-UAV . Two unarmed versions, known as the General Atomics ALTUS were built, ALTUS I for the Naval Postgraduate School and ALTUS II for the NASA ERAST Project in 1997 and 1996, respectively. Based on the MQ-1 Predator, the General Atomics MQ-1C Gray Eagle was developed for the U.S. Army. The USAF ordered a total of 259 Predators, and due to retirements and crashes

1449-449: The 2011 Libyan civil war , the 2014 intervention in Syria , and Somalia . The USAF describes the Predator as a "Tier II" MALE UAS (medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft system). The UAS consists of four aircraft or "air vehicles" with sensors, a ground control station (GCS), and a primary satellite link communication suite. Powered by a Rotax engine and driven by a propeller,

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1518-612: The 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , the NGA has taken operational control of DoD's Project Maven , the AI ISR project for area defense, to identify point targets for ISR. The NGA uses OREN, the Odyssey GEOINT Edge Node for National System for Geospatial Intelligence, or NGS. The Joint Regional Edge Node (JREN) is on-deck for distributing nearly a petabyte to the Combatant Commands in the next year, for 2023, an increase by

1587-536: The Air Force Special Operations Command tested the ability to rapidly deploy Predator aircraft. Two MQ-1s were loaded into a Boeing C-17 Globemaster III in a cradle system that also carried a control terminal, maintenance tent, and the crew. The test was to prove the UAVs could be deployed and set up at an expeditionary base within four hours of landing. In a recent undisclosed deployment, airmen set up

1656-473: The Dungeons & Dragons game i* , a software modeling language Istari , the wizards in J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world Hubei Istar F.C. , a Chinese football club See also [ edit ] Ishtar (disambiguation) Star One (disambiguation) One star (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with

1725-854: The U-2 , to uncrewed aircraft systems (UAS) such as the US Air Force's Global Hawk and Predator and the US Army's Hunter and PSST Aerostats, to unmanned ocean-going vessels, to other ground-, air-, sea-, or space-based equipment, to human intelligence teams, or to AI-based ISR systems. The intelligence data provided by these ISR systems can take many forms, including optical, radar, or infrared images or electronic signals . Effective ISR data can provide early warning of enemy threats as well as enable military forces to increase effectiveness, coordination, and lethality, and demand for ISR capabilities to support ongoing military operations has increased. In December 2021,

1794-518: The " Amber ", a drone developed by Leading Systems, Inc. The company's owner, Abraham Karem , was the former chief designer for the Israeli Air Force , and had immigrated to the U.S. in the late 1970s. Karem's company went bankrupt and was bought by a U.S. defense contractor, from whom the CIA secretly bought five drones (now called the " Gnat "). Karem agreed to produce a quiet engine for the vehicle, which had until then sounded like "a lawnmower in

1863-562: The ACTD, Predators were operated by a combined Army/Navy/Air Force/Marine team managed by the Navy's Joint Program Office for Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (JPO-UAV) and first deployed to Gjader, Albania , for operations in the former Yugoslavia in spring 1995. By the start of the United States Afghan campaign in 2001 , the USAF had acquired 60 Predators, but lost 20 of them in action. Few if any of

1932-586: The Air Force's combat UAVs, including MQ-1B. On 28 August 2013, a Predator belonging to the 163d Reconnaissance Wing was flying at 18,000 to 20,000 feet over the Rim Fire in California providing infrared video of lurking fires, after receiving emergency approvals. Rules limit the Predator behavior; it must be accompanied by a manned aircraft, and its camera must only be active above the fire. In September 2013,

2001-458: The Balkans area and operated out of Taszar , Hungary. Several others were destroyed in the course of Operation Noble Anvil , the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia : In 2000, a joint CIA-DoD effort was agreed to locate Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan. Dubbed "Afghan Eyes", it involved a projected 60-day trial run of Predators over the country. The first experimental flight was held on 7 September 2000. White House security chief Richard A. Clarke

2070-578: The Electrical Engineering and Computer Science departments in tactical applications during Cadet Leadership Development Training . Ukraine's soldiers are using FPV drones on the battlefield, armed with munitions. ISR concepts are also associated with certain intelligence units, for instance Task Force ODIN , ISR TF (Company+) in Bosnia, Kosovo and Afghanistan. In light of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine , commercial satellite imagery

2139-534: The MQ-1 is subject to limitations of the Missile Technology Control Regime because it can be armed; export markets are also limited by the existence of the Reaper. Given the Predator's pending phase-out and its size, weight, and power limitations, the Air Force decided not to pursue upgrades to make it more effective in contested environments, and determined its only use in defended airspace would be as

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2208-651: The MQ-1. In 2005, the U.S. Department of Defense recommended retiring Ellington Field 's 147th Fighter Wing 's F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets (a total of 15 aircraft), which was approved by the Base Realignment and Closure committee. They will be replaced with 12 MQ-1 Predator UAVs, and the new unit should be fully equipped and outfitted by 2009. The wing's combat support arm will remain intact. The 272d Engineering Installation Squadron, an Air National Guard unit currently located off-base, will move into Ellington Field in its place. The 3d Special Operations Squadron

2277-559: The Nevada desert, a Hellfire missile was successfully launched on a replica of bin Laden's Afghanistan Tarnak residence. A missile launched from a Predator exploded inside one of the replica's rooms; it was concluded that any people in the room would have been killed. However, the armed Predator was not deployed before the September 11 attacks . The USAF also investigated using the Predator to drop battlefield ground sensors and to carry and deploy

2346-487: The Predator are classified by the U.S. , U.S. military officials have reported an appreciation for the intelligence and reconnaissance-gathering abilities of RPAs but declined to publicly discuss their offensive use. The United States Air Force retired the Predator in 2018, replacing it with the Reaper. Civilian applications for drones have included border enforcement and scientific studies, and to monitor wind direction and other characteristics of large forest fires (such as

2415-405: The Predator program and was directed on 21 June 2000 to explore armament options. This led to reinforced wings with munitions storage pylons , as well as a laser designator . The RQ-1 conducted its first firing of a Hellfire anti-tank missile on 16 February 2001 over a bombing range near Indian Springs Air Force Station north of Las Vegas, Nevada , with an inert AGM-114C successfully striking

2484-521: The Predator's maximum speed is 1,800 mph (2,900 km/h) lower than the MiG-25's, and its service ceiling is nearly 60,000 ft (18,000 m) lower, making the "run" segment of any "bait and run" mission a difficult task. In this incident, the Predator did not run (or could not run fast enough), but instead fired one of its Stingers. The Stinger's heat-seeker became "distracted" by the MiG's missile and missed

2553-487: The Predator, Reaper and Global Hawk were described as "the most accident-prone aircraft in the Air Force fleet." On 3 March 2011, the U.S. Air Force took delivery of its last MQ-1 Predator in a ceremony at General Atomics' flight operations facility. Since its first flight in July 1994, the MQ-1 series accumulated over 1,000,000 flight hours and maintained a fleet fully mission capable rate over 90 percent. On 22 October 2013,

2622-518: The Predator. According to Pakistani authorities, the U.S. strike was based on faulty intelligence. An Iraqi MiG-25 shot down a Predator performing reconnaissance over the no fly zone in Iraq on 23 December 2002. This was the first time in history a conventional aircraft and a drone had engaged each other in combat. Predators had been armed with AIM-92 Stinger air-to-air missiles, and were purportedly being used to "bait" Iraqi fighters, then run. However,

2691-509: The Predators was lost over Bosnia on 11 August 1995; a second was deliberately destroyed on 14 August after suffering an engine failure over Bosnia, which may have been caused by hostile ground fire. The wreckage of the first Predator was handed over to Russia, according to Serb sources. Its original 60-day stay was extended to 120 days. The following spring, in March 1996, the system was redeployed to

2760-547: The RQ-1B (not to be confused with the Predator B, which became the MQ-9 Reaper ) denotes the baseline production configuration. These are designations of the system as a unit. The actual aircraft themselves were designated RQ-1K for pre-production models, and RQ-1L for production models. In 2002, the USAF officially changed the designation to MQ-1 ("M" for multi-role) to reflect its growing use as an armed aircraft. During campaign in

2829-454: The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency has allegedly been operating the drones out of Shamsi airfield in Pakistan to attack militants in Pakistan's Federally Administered Tribal Areas . During this period, the MQ-1 Predator fitted with Hellfire missiles was successfully used to kill a number of prominent al Qaeda operatives. On 13 January 2006, 18 civilians were unintentionally killed by

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2898-593: The U.S. Air Force had 195 MQ-1 Predators and 28 MQ-9 Reapers in operation. Predators and Reapers fired missiles 244 times in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2007 and 2008. A report in March 2009 indicated that U.S. Air Force had lost 70 Predators in air crashes during its operational history. Fifty-five were lost to equipment failure, operator error, or weather. Five were shot down in Bosnia , Kosovo , Syria and Iraq. Eleven more were lost to operational accidents on combat missions. In 2012,

2967-408: The U.S. Air Force's fleets of MQ-1 Predators and MQ-9 Reaper remotely piloted aircraft reached 2,000,000 flight hours. The RPA program began in the mid-1990s, taking 16 years for them to reach 1 million flight hours. The 2 million hour mark was reached just two and a half years after that. On 9 March 2018, the U.S. Air Force officially retired the MQ-1 Predator from operational service. The aircraft

3036-744: The US Navy began testing the usefulness and effectiveness of unmanned "saildrones" at recognizing targets of interest on the high seas. For space-based targeting sensors, in a 2019 Broad Agency Announcement, the US government defined ISR in this case as "a capability for gathering data and information on an object or in an area of interest (AOI) on a persistent, event-driven, or scheduled basis using imagery, signals, and other collection methods. This includes warning (to include ballistic missile activity), targeting analysis, threat capability assessment, situational awareness, battle damage assessment (BDA), and characterization of

3105-530: The USAF's armed Predator program to be significantly accelerated. Black, and "Richard", who was in charge of the CTC's Bin Laden Issue Station , continued to press during 2001 for a Predator armed with Hellfire missiles. Further weapons tests occurred between 22 May and 7 June 2001, with mixed results. While missile accuracy was excellent, there were some problems with missile fuzing. In the first week of June, in

3174-481: The air vehicle can fly up to 400  nmi (460  mi ; 740  km ) to a target, loiter overhead for 14 hours, then return to its base. The MQ-1 Predator was the primary remotely piloted aircraft used for offensive operations by the USAF and the CIA in Afghanistan and the Pakistani tribal areas from 2001 until the introduction of the MQ-9 Reaper ; it has also been deployed elsewhere. Because offensive uses of

3243-485: The capability of identifying the infrared signature of a human body from an altitude of 3 km (10,000 ft), making the aircraft an ideal search and rescue tool. The longest declassified Predator flight as of 2011 lasted for 40 hours and 5 minutes. The total flight time reached 1 million hours in April 2010, according to General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. The USAF BIG SAFARI program office managed

3312-463: The drone remotely from great distances. It was no longer necessary to use close-up radio signals during the Predator's takeoff and ascent. The entire flight could be controlled by satellite from any command and control center with the right equipment. The CIA proposed to attempt over Afghanistan the first fully remote Predator flight operations, piloted from the agency's headquarters at Langley . The Predator air vehicle and sensors are controlled from

3381-576: The drone that was used by the California Air National Guard in the August 2013 Rim Fire ). The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Pentagon began experimenting with unmanned reconnaissance aircraft (drones) in the early 1980s. The CIA preferred small, lightweight, unobtrusive drones, in contrast to the United States Air Force (USAF). In the early 1990s, the CIA became interested in

3450-507: The early 1990s for aerial reconnaissance and forward observation roles, the Predator carries cameras and other sensors. It was modified and upgraded to carry and fire two AGM-114 Hellfire missiles or other munitions. The aircraft entered service in 1995, and saw combat in the war in Afghanistan , Pakistan , the NATO intervention in Bosnia , the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia , the Iraq War , Yemen ,

3519-522: The ensuing 15 Predator missions over Afghanistan were rated successful. On at least two flights, a Predator spotted a tall man in white robes at bin Laden's Tarnak Farm compound outside Kandahar ; the figure was subsequently deemed to be "probably bin Laden". By October 2000, deteriorating weather conditions made it difficult for the Predator to fly from its base in Uzbekistan , and the flights were suspended. On 16 February 2001 at Nellis Air Force Base ,

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3588-462: The final RQ-1 ordered by Italy by October 2015, marking the end of Predator A production after two decades. The last Predator for the USAF was completed in 2011; later Predator aircraft were built on the Predator XP assembly line. The United States Air Force announced plans to retire the MQ-1 on 9 March 2018. The Predator was officially retired from USAF service in March 2018. As of March 2009,

3657-503: The former Yugoslavia , a Predator's pilot would sit with several payload specialists in a van near the runway of the drone's operating base. Direct radio signals controlled the drone's takeoff and initial ascent, and then communications shifted to military satellite networks linked to the pilot's van. Pilots experienced a delay of several seconds between moving their sticks and the drone's response. But by 2000, improvements in communications systems made it possible, at least in theory, to fly

3726-503: The ground control station (GCS) via a C-band line-of-sight data link or a K u -band satellite data link for beyond-line-of-sight operations. During flight operations the crew in the GCS is a pilot and two sensor operators. The aircraft is equipped with the AN/AAS-52 Multi-spectral Targeting System, a color nose camera (generally used by the pilot for flight control), a variable aperture day-TV camera, and

3795-531: The information from all the sensors and processing it into useful knowledge. ISTAR can also refer to: There are several variations on the "ISTAR" acronym. Some variations reflect specific emphasis on certain aspects of ISTAR. A term used when emphasis is to be placed on the sensing component of ISTAR. RSTA is used by the US Army in place of STAR or ISTAR. Also, a term used to identify certain US Army units: for instance, 3rd Squadron, 153rd RSTA. These units serve

3864-711: The initial ACTD phase, the United States Army led the evaluation program, but in April 1996, the Secretary of Defense selected the U.S. Air Force as the operating service for the RQ-1A Predator system. The 3d Special Operations Squadron at Cannon Air Force Base , 11th , 15th , 17th , and 18th Reconnaissance Squadrons , Creech Air Force Base , Nevada, and the Air National Guard 's 163d Reconnaissance Wing at March Air Reserve Base , California, currently operate

3933-439: The losses were from enemy action, the worst problem apparently being foul weather, particularly icy conditions. Some critics within the Pentagon saw the high loss rate as a sign of poor operational procedures. In response to the losses caused by cold weather conditions, a few of the later USAF Predators were fitted with de-icing systems, along with an uprated turbocharged engine and improved avionics. This improved "Block 1" version

4002-599: The number in Air Force operation was reduced to 154 as of May 2014. Budget proposals planned to retire the Predator fleet between FY 2015 and 2017 in favor of the larger MQ-9 Reaper , which has greater payload and range. The Predators were to be stored at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base or given to other agencies willing to take them. The U.S. Customs and Border Protection showed interest, but already had higher-performance Reapers and were burdened with operating costs. The U.S. Coast Guard also showed interest in land-based UAV surveillance. Foreign sales were also an option, but

4071-416: The operational environment." Persistence was described: "Persistent access provides predictable coverage of an area of interest (AOI). Most space-based intelligence collection capabilities consist of multiple satellites operating in concert, or supplemented by other sensors, when continuous surveillance of an area is desired. Persistent sensors must provide sufficient surveillance revisit timelines to support

4140-806: The planning and operation of systems that collect, process, and disseminate data in support of current and future military operations. In July 2021 the NDAA budget markup by the House Armed Services Committee sought to retain ISR resources such as the RQ-4 Global Hawk, the E-8 Joint Surveillance Radar and Attack System (JSTARS) which the Air Force is seeking to divest. Examples of ISR systems include surveillance and reconnaissance systems ranging from satellites , to crewed aircraft such as

4209-551: The room would have been killed. On 4 September 2001 (after the Bush cabinet approved a Qaeda/Taliban plan), CIA chief Tenet ordered the agency to resume reconnaissance flights. The Predators were now weapons-capable, but did not carry missiles because the host country (presumably Uzbekistan) hadn't granted permission. Subsequent to 9/11, approval was quickly granted to ship the missiles, and the Predator aircraft and missiles reached their overseas location on 16 September 2001. The first mission

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4278-436: The same airfield. The U.S. Air Force used a concept called "Remote-Split Operations" where the satellite datalink is placed in a different location and is connected to the GCS through fiber optic cabling. This allows Predators to be launched and recovered by a small "Launch and Recovery Element" and then handed off to a "Mission Control Element" for the rest of the flight. This allows a smaller number of troops to be deployed to

4347-403: The sensor ball can be used due to design limitations. Either the daylight variable aperture or the infrared electro-optical sensor may be operated simultaneously with the synthetic aperture radar, if equipped. All later Predators are equipped with a laser designator that allows the pilot to identify targets for other aircraft and even provide the laser guidance for manned aircraft. This laser

4416-555: The sky". The new development became known as the "Predator". General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA) was awarded a contract to develop the Predator in January 1994, and the initial Advanced Concept Technology Demonstration (ACTD) phase lasted from January 1994 to June 1996. First flight took place on 3 July 1994 at the El Mirage airfield in the Mojave Desert . The aircraft itself was

4485-447: The title Istar . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Istar&oldid=1194105444 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages ISTAR Information

4554-477: Was first operationally deployed in 1995 and in 2011 the last of 268 Predators were delivered to the service, of which just over 100 were still in service by the start of 2018. While the Predator was phased out by the Air Force in favor of the heavier and more capable MQ-9 Reaper, the Predator continues to serve in the MQ-1C Gray Eagle derivative for the U.S. Army as well as with several foreign nations. During

4623-446: Was flown over Kabul and Kandahar on 18 September without carrying weapons. Subsequent host nation approval was granted on 7 October and the first armed mission was flown on the same day. On 5 May 2013, an MQ-1 Predator surpassed 20,000 flight hours over Afghanistan by a single Predator. Predator P107 achieved the milestone while flying a 21-hour combat mission; P107 was first delivered in October 2004. From at least 2003 until 2011,

4692-424: Was impressed by the resulting video footage; he hoped that the drones might eventually be used to target Bin Laden with cruise missiles or armed aircraft. Clarke's enthusiasm was matched by that of Cofer Black , head of the CIA's Counterterrorist Center (CTC), and Charles Allen , in charge of the CIA's intelligence-collection operations. The three men backed an immediate trial run of reconnaissance flights. Ten out of

4761-505: Was referred to as the "RQ-1B", or the "MQ-1B" if it carried munitions; the corresponding air vehicle designation was "RQ-1L" or "MQ-1L". The Predator system was initially designated the RQ-1 Predator . The "R" is the United States Department of Defense designation for reconnaissance and the "Q" refers to an unmanned aircraft system. The "1" describes it as being the first of a series of aircraft systems built for unmanned reconnaissance. Pre-production systems were designated as RQ-1A, while

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