As ice melts, N. Command eyes Arctic patrols (xpost from Veterans)

[unhappycamper]

As ice melts, N. Command eyes Arctic patrols
By Lolita C. Baldor - The Associated Press
Posted : Tuesday May 13, 2008 5:47:09 EDT

WASHINGTON — As the Arctic ice cap shrinks, the Pentagon is eyeing the expanding navigable waters as possible entry points for security threats that must be monitored more closely, the chief of the U.S. Northern Command told The Associated Press.

Air Force Gen. Victor “Gene” Renuart also said in an interview that defense officials are working with the Federal Aviation Administration and Canadian authorities to determine how unmanned aircraft can be used to monitor the northern border without interfering with busy commercial air traffic routes.

In North Dakota, the Grand Forks Air Force Base is expecting to receive at least one drone that will be used by the U.S. Border Patrol, said Tech Sgt. Joseph Kapinos, a base spokesman. No arrival date has been set, he said.

“That’s not really military. We’re just in a support role,” Kapinos said. “The base itself is expected to get Predators in the future, but that date has not been nailed down.”

For much of the last 18 months, the military has been more visibly focused on the country’s southern border — dispatching National Guard troops to help patrol there while additional border guards were trained.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/05/ap_northernborder_051208/