Civilian Contractors Are Now being Hired By The Pentagon To Fly Drones For Combat Patrols

A Predator drone flies a training mission over Victorville last year. The robotic plane was controlled by a pilot on the ground at the U.S. Air Force 163d Reconnaissance Wing of the California National Guard at Southern California Logistics Airport. Credit: Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times

L.A. Times: Air Force hires civilian drone pilots for combat patrols; critics question legality

The Air Force has hired civilian defense contractors to fly MQ-9 Reaper drones to help track suspected militants and other targets in global hot spots, a previously undisclosed expansion in the privatization of once-exclusively military functions.

For the first time, civilian pilots and crews now operate what the Air Force calls "combat air patrols," daily round-the-clock flights above areas of military operations to provide video and collect other sensitive intelligence.

Contractors control two Reaper patrols a day, but the Air Force plans to expand that to 10 a day by 2019. Each patrol involves up to four drones.

WNU Editor: Cannot say that I am surprised. There are not enough drone pilots .... and the demand keeps growing.