Drone operators at Holloman Air Force Base in the southwestern state of New Mexico: Modern warfare is as invisible as a thought, deprived of its meaning by distance. Gilles Mingasson/ DER SPIEGEL
Scott Beauchamp, Defense One: Drone Pilots Are Breaking the Old Definitions of Valor
Traditional notions of heroism don't always leave room for those U.S. troops engaged in high-tech, cutting edge warfare.
In November, the U.S. Air Force announced that it would, for the first time ever, use civilians to pilot drones. Technically, the CIA has had civilian drone pilots for years, but then, the CIA is a civilian agency. For a branch of the military, on the other hand, to outsource arguably its most cutting-edge piloting to contract workers is groundbreaking—and raises profound questions about what it means to be a soldier.
It’s no secret that the number of contractors operating in American war zones has skyrocketed. In 2008 in Iraq, there were more contractors (163,446) on the ground than troops (146,800). And in 2009 in Afghanistan, there were 104,101 contractors but just 63,950 troops. The Global War on Terror is also a Global War for Hire.
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WNU Editor: An interesting debate on what will define a war hero in the future, including the vital and growing role that civilians are now playing in conflict zones.
1 comment:
Yes they are.
In all out war they will be targets.
In future war we will not have pilots flying planes at all.
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