Category: UK Drones – Operations

UK adds another drone to its arsenal

Chris Cole

ScanEagleThe UK Ministry of Defence confirmed that it has signed a £30 million deal with Boeing subsidiary Insitu for the ScanEagle drone.

ScanEagle is an unarmed surveillance drone that is to be used in a maritime role by the Royal Navy.  This latest contract makes the sixth type of unmanned drone that UK forces have in their arsenal with all three services –  army, air force and navy – now operating unmanned drones. Read more →

Europe presses US on drones – not to cease but to share

Chris Cole

EuropeFlagsEuropean countries are piling more pressure on the US to allow them to buy armed Predator and Reaper drones.  As we have previously reported Germany wants to buy armed Reaper drones from the US and France too has reported this week that it ‘expects’ the US to allow it to acquire unarmed Reapers as a step towards it aim of acquiring armed drone capability.

Italy meanwhile is getting frustrated with a lack of response from the US to its request to arm the unarmed Reaper that it currently operates. Read more →

First British drone strike carried out from UK RAF Waddington

Chris Cole
British Reaper drone controlled from RAF Waddington

Less than a week ago, the UK MoD announced that British Reaper drones over Afghanistan are now being controlled directly from the UK.

This morning  a number of British defence journalists are reporting that the first British drone strike from UK soil was carried out yesterday (30 April)  from RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire.  No details about the strike have officially been released, nor are they likely to be given the secrecy surrounding the use of British drones.  [UPDATE BELOW] Read more →

BREAKING NEWS: UK MoD confirms British Reaper drones in Afghanistan being controlled from RAF Waddington

Chris Cole

The UK MoD has today confirmed that British drones over Afghanistan are now being controlled from the UK.

For the first time UK forces can remotely control armed drones over Afghanistan while sitting in air conditioned trailers at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire.   The growing use of unmanned drones to simply and easily launch lethal attacks at great distances – over 3,000 miles in the case of Waddington and Afghanistan – with no risk or political consequences should be a cause of extreme concern. Read more →

Breaking: UK ‘stands up’ new drone squadron this week

Chris Cole

The Guardian has tonight revealed that  the RAF will ‘stand-up’  its new drone squadron – 13 Squadron  – at a ceremony at RAF Waddington this Friday (26th Oct).   The UK’s five armed Reaper drones are currently piloted from Creech Air Force Base in Nevada.  In May 2011 the UK announced that it would begin to control drones from the UK and announced the formation of a new squadron to do so.  The UK has also purchased five additional Reapers which are also due to come into service over the next few weeks. Read more →

Revealed: MoD media briefing on British drone operations

Chris Cole
Armed Forces Minister Nick Harvey meeting UK Reaper pilots

The Ministry of Defence’s ‘Top Level Messages’ briefing for January 2012 contains several items on recent UK drone operation and developments.   While there are no new or dramatic revelations it’s an interesting summary of the UK’s current drone activities.

  • The UK Reaper Remotely Piloted Air System (RPAS) programme has now provided over 30,000 hours of high quality, persistent armed Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) support to UK and ISAF forces in Afghanistan. 
  • Peter Luff MP, Minister of Defence Equipment, Support and Technology, announced in December that the MOD had placed a £40 million contract for aerospace research with BAE Systems. The four-year Future Combat Air System (FCAS) Focused Research contract aims to sustain and develop the UK’s critical technology and skills in this field. It will inform the MOD’s unmanned air system strategy over the coming decades to ensure that the best use is made of these new technologies.
  • The Hermes 450 unmanned air system has provided over 50,000 hours of support to UK Forces since it entered service in 2007.
  • On 6 December 2010, the Prime Minister announced that funding will be made available to enable further increases in the UK Reaper RPAS capability. RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire has been selected as the preferred location for the basing of a key element of this additional capability, the Ground Control Stations. The decision to base the Ground Control Stations at RAF Waddington was informed by the fact that the Station is the RAF’s ISTAR Hub with the required flying supervisory chain of command. Work has already commenced at RAF Waddington in preparation for the stand up of XIII Squadron, the arrival of the UK Reaper Ground Control Stations and associated equipment in 2012.
  • At this stage there are no plans to base or fly UK Reaper aircraft in the UK as the aircraft are specifically required to be based in Afghanistan to support UK and Coalition Forces under Urgent Operational Requirement. However, in the future, as the Ground Control Stations will be based within the UK, RAF crews will be able to fly the UK Reaper aircraft remotely from the UK.
  • The MOD intends to begin relocating 39 Squadron from Creech Air Force Base (AFB), Nevada to RAF Waddington once XIII Squadron is operational. The relocation of 39 Squadron will be phased to ensure there is no disruption to UK Reaper support to current operations. While there are a range of benefits of being collocated with the USAF at Creech AFB, the manpower requirements of 2 squadrons (39 and XIII Squadrons) will require qualified crews to be available for additional tours of duty on Reaper to reduce.

While the MoD is briefing journalists with selected information about UK drone operations, we’d really like them to answer our questions and Freedom of Information requests on the circumstances of the more than 200 UK drone strikes in Afghanistan.