Air Force, Army Leaders Discuss New Concept of UAV Operations

LANGLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Va. --- Air Force and Army leaders met June 30 to discuss developing a new joint unmanned aerial system concept of operations and maximize the contributions these systems provide to joint forces in the field.>> Gen. John D.W. Corley, Air Combat Command commander, met with Army Gen. William S. Wallace, Army Training and Doctrine Command commanding general, and Army Lt. Gen. Michael Vane, Army Capabilities and Integration Center director, to discuss a new joint UAS CONOPS. The new CONOPS would emphasize the full spectrum of conflict from centralized major combat operations to smaller-scale decentralized operations to include stability operations.>> The commanders agreed that a new CONOPS would improve joint, collaborative efforts for UAS applications in joint operations.>> "As opposed to finding independent solutions, we are trying to find joint, collaborative solutions that best support the joint warfighter in any spectrum of war," General Corley said in announcing the development of the CONOPS.>> This discussion follows dialogue during the past several months in which a joint Army-Air Force team has worked to identify current and future UAS requirements. In January, the chiefs of staff for the Army and Air Force along with other senior leaders met to discuss issues of mutual interest regarding interoperability.>> From the meeting, a memorandum was signed that formalized existing arrangements between the Army and Air Force developed during the course of the war on terrorism to support the warfighter. The two services also agreed to develop a process to identify and address equipment interoperability issues, including the development of a UAS CONOPS that would lay the foundation for acquisition, airspace, air defense, force structure and organizational strategies.