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There are two movies, both on Netflix Now, that concern fictional USAF drone crews. They are Good Kill and Eye In The Sky . I'm long retired and never had anything to do with drone operations. Real drone crews and also current USAF members. If you saw either or both of these, what did you think about them?

Meh, most of us don't care... but this is a big deal for many parts of the military, especially for some of the ground pounders that have come to rely on these systems... https://dronedj.com/2018/06/07/department-of-defense-bans-the-purchase-of-commercial-over-the-shelf-uas-including-dji-drones/ Department of Defense bans the purchase of commercial-over-the-shelf UAS, including DJI drones effective immediately “SUBJECT: (U/FOUO) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Systems Cybersecurity Vulnerabilities (U/FOUO) On May 14, 2018 the DoD Inspector General found that DoD has not implemented an adequate process to access cybersecurity risks associated with using commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). (U/FOUO) Effectively immediately, you must suspend purchases of COTS UAS for operational use until the DoD develops a strategy to adequately assess and mitigate the risks associated with their use. (U/FOUO) In addition you must suspend the use of COTS UASs until the DoD identifies and fields a solution to mitigate known cybersecurity risks. (U/FOUO) I hold approval authority for any requests for exemptions, on a case by case basis, to support urgent needs. (U/FOUO) The points of contact for this matter are Ms Ellen M, Lord, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, and Mr, Dana Deasy, Department of Defense Chiefs Information Officer.” and the ARMY led the way, banning them last year: https://soldiersystems.net/2017/08/05/army-bans-use-of-a-cots-uas-system/ ... So, how long until we "develop a strategy"?

Email traffic has been circulating in the RPA community that manning in going to be "healthy" come late 2016. As a result, the wizards at AFPC are estimating that ALFA tour pilots are going to start being released back to their previous manned aircraft, albeit slowly, starting Spring 2017. As a current non-vol stuck in RPAs, I'm hopeful and excited. I was pulled from AMC only after 9 months in my squadron, barely broke over 100 hours flying (boo hoo). I felt robbed, but this opportunity feels like my one chance to get back to what I love. Unfortunately, I don't believe the Air Force is going to follow through with it; I don't think they'll have a choice. After talking to fellow 11X and 18X pilots, I don't think many RPA guys are going to volunteer for more austerity, more work, and more inaction from AF leadership and choose to stay in. The Air Force simply won't have the RPA manning numbers to justify releasing anyone back. This feels like a giant carrot on a stick - something to keep me working hard because "there's still a chance!" I'm not sure how credible a plan like this can be. Curious on everyone's take on this situation. Instead of re-explaining the whole plan I've cut and pasted information from an email I received from a Squadron Commander a few weeks back concerning my aforementioned dilemma. · MQ-1/9 Pilots: o All ops locations projected to hit 100% manning in the Jan-Feb ’17 timeframe o ALFA return (i.e. pilots sent from manned acft to fly MQ-1B/9) should be expected at around 10-15 total from MQ-1/9 § Priority will be competitive and 11R/11B will take priority over MAF assets due to manning levels § Spring and beyond *should see returns of around 30-40 per VML cycle § *dependent on no change to USAF CAP commitments or authorization increases · This is what I need from officers: o I will be sending a separate email to all members on Initial Fall VML; however, please engage me soonest if you wish to volunteer to move to Holloman AFB. o As stated above, AFPC is projecting ALFA tour pilots (i.e. people that used to fly manned acft and were sent to MQ-1B/9s for a tour) to start to be released back to manned acft. This will initially be a very small number and gradually grow if manning projections remain the same and USAF does not increase manning requirements (i.e. more CAPs, increase pilot to CAP ratio, etc). As such, I encourage you to engage me if you wish to re-cat to MQ-9 career field (i.e. officially change your AFSC to reflect that you desire to stay in RPA career field). o Of note, the general focus remains on increasing manpower at Holloman AFB Formal Training Units while also increasing/maintaining healthier manpower levels across RPA community as a whole. Removed some personal / needless information. Interested in hearing what guys who've seen the manning ebb and flow think.

Standard assertion that: I looked and decided this merited its own thread, but mods please delete if this is not the consensus. I wanted some opinions on what an ANG unit's conversion back to manned from UAVs might look like. Does big Air Force see these units the same as it does manned units changing missions? That is to say, is a mission change such as this likely even if it's possible? How many UAV units are "future proofing" by sending their studs through full up UPT? Some initial limiting factors -change to the original manned aircraft bed down facilities that would prohibit the return of manned aircraft. -spin up of ops and mx personal given projected future shortages on the ad side -original issues that lead to loss of manned mission remain, e.g. range too distant It seems like this kind of mission change would probably be less dependent on these factors and more on: -future demand for UAV assets -future procurement of F-35, A-X, LAAR, or similar -local political advocacy looking forward to your thoughts

I'm a Second Lieutenant in the Marine Corps and was recently informed that I will be attending IFS in Pueblo, CO followed by some school in San Antonio. Does anyone know what this process is like? Have there been many Marines that have came through this pipeline in the past? I understand what IFS is, but what is the curriculum in San Antonio geared towards? Any information on this topic would be very helpful. Thanks!