Software could help airmen watching UAV feeds

[unhappycamper]

Software could help airmen watching UAV feeds
By Michael Hoffman - Staff writer
Posted : Friday May 30, 2008 16:55:39 EDT

Airmen stare every day at screens broadcasting real-time video of vehicles known to carry hunted terrorists.

Days can pass without movement, but airmen keep staring, afraid even to blink and risk losing a targeted pickup truck or Mercedes sedan as it drives out of the Predator sensor ball’s field of view.

Soon, they might not have to look so hard. There’s a software program in the works that would autonomously follow ground movement or track vehicles — one of many projects the Air Force Research Laboratory is working on to get the most out of manned and unmanned spy aircraft.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates recently challenged all four services to find “out-of-the-box” solutions to provide field commanders with more intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft over Iraq and Afghanistan.

In April, he stood up an ISR Task Force dedicated to finding quick answers. Task Force officials told Gates on May 6 its main focus would be to find new methods to use currently deployed ISR assets instead of fielding new aircraft.


Rest of article at: http://www.airforcetimes.com/news/2008/05/airforce_uav_sensors_053008w/

[ChairmanAgnostic]

1. better yet, program the software to add scoring to their work

If they spot a baby, and shoot a missile at it, 100 points. A woman trying to get to the hospital to give birth is worth a 1000 point bonus. And two men meeting together, trying to open up a new business (but seen carrying ruble out away from their store) hell, they have to be dangerous, to a DOUBLE SCORE.
The soldiers that score the most points win!

some may take offense at this.
consider this in response. Since WWII, military experts have worried about the dehumanizing nature of long distance artillery, and worse, aerial bombing. These drone aircraft take one more step further away from the human in control to the effect and impact of the decision to fire. Military psychologists have serious concerns that this de-humanization creates major problems with respect to the legal/ethical conduct of war.

In a hand to hand conflict, it was well known that a temporary truce would occur, allowing both sides to grab their dead and injured. When tanks hit the field, those unspoken rules still applied, and the bigger gun operators did their best to avoid REd Cross and hospital locations. Even with aerial bombing, such targets were verbotten.

But despite an incredible leap in the ability to direct and concentrate our weapons on one spot, that concern for injured, humanity, civilians, and hospitals has become eroded. Hitting journalists these days seems to be by design, not accident. Hitting hospitals is not an afterthought, but deliberate policy. And shooting people, even with white flags or red crescents, seems to be rewarded, not condemned.

YEs, I know, the military leadership would deny this. But even with embeds, and the most inaccessible war in our history, the stories still come out.

[Name removed]

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[ChairmanAgnostic]

3. let me refer you to just several sources

starting with WaPo 2002-2008, to LATimes 2002-2008. the IRC reports about US failure to protect areas they knew contained international journalists, to no less than 100 confirmed attacks on medical stations, hospitals, and more by US troops in the past 4 years.

Mistakes? sure, they happen. But tell me why more journalists have died in this war AFTER mission accomplished than any other.

No, no murder, no excess, no rape by soldiers, no mistakes, no attacking wings of Baghdad Hospitals, no attacking medic stations that Sadr groups had, NOOOOO, that never happens.

in your world maybe, not in the real one.