Dysfunctional Drones Underscore Mission Mess at Homeland Security

[unhappycamper]

http://truth-out.org/news/item/28645-dysfunctional-drones-underscore-mission-mess-at-homeland-security



Dysfunctional Drones Underscore Mission Mess at Homeland Security
Wednesday, 21 January 2015 12:45 By Tom Barry, Truthout | News Analysis

President Obama and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson are committed to more drone surveillance of US borders. Over the past year, the president has called for emergency supplemental funding for DHS to fund a "sustained border security surge," including new funding for border drones.

Johnson specified that deployment of Predator drones over the Southwest border is key to his new "border security initiative, which he calls the Southern Border and Approaches Campaign. Before joining DHS last year, Johnson served successively as general counsel for the Air Force and Department of Defense (2009-2013). As the chief DOD legal counsel, Johnson formulated the legal justification for President Obama's use of Predator drones in targeted killings overseas.

Support by the White House and DHS for the use of military-grade drones persists even as criticism of the program mounts. Since the first deployment in 2005 of Predator drones by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) - the most generously funded DHS agency - the program has come under critical review from the Congressional Research Service, Government Accountability Office (GAO), and the DHS Office of the Inspector General (OIG).

More than a dozen reports have lambasted the drone program for its failure to meet stated goals, absence of performance measures, and failure to formulate operational plans and strategic directions. Office of Air and Marine (OAM), which DHS created at the same time that CBP launched the drone program, has overseen the expansion of its drone fleet from one Predator to eight Predators and two Predator marine-surveillance variants known as Guardians.

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Drones may be lethal, but ya gotta get them in the air.

http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/drug-smugglers-beating-dhs-at-drone-war-with-1-budget-029369/

Drug Smugglers Beating DHS at Drone War with <1% Budget
Jan 23, 2015 14:55 UTC by Defense Industry Daily staff

A Mexican drug operation appears to have operationalized cross-border drug smuggling with helicopter drones. One device – what appears to be a DJI SPreadwings S900 Multi-rotor System, which retails for $1,400 – fell into a Tijuana parking lot after being loaded with six pounds of meth. The wire services and newspapers are indicating that it was overloaded at that weight, but the S900 has an all-up weight of 15 pounds. The weakness of the system is a battery that lasts 18 minutes at hover, which may explain why the device fell short of the border. Interestingly, it appears to be a similar model to the one used in Quebec to deliver contraband tobacco into a prison yard. Among other agencies, the FAA might not appreciate the unlicensed commercial aviation activity; provided the local police officials report it. Homeland Security also has drones to theoretically interdict drugs, but that program costs $12,000 per flight hour, which is one reason why some people would like to take those toys away from them.
Jan 23, 2015 14:55 UTC by Defense Industry Daily staff

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. It doesn't matter if all these Terra terra terra programs do not work.

What counts is how much money contractors can make from the programs, and how often Congress people can be re-elected.

Priorities, man..get your priorities straight.

[bemildred]

2. When did they ever know what they are doing?

Do we still have color coded alerts?