Base sends surveillance craft back to Bosnia

Robert Macy

Monday, March 29, 1999 | 5 a.m.

LAS VEGAS - Unmanned aerial surveillance craft designed to monitor battlefield scenarios have been sent to Bosnia from Nellis Air Force Base, a spokesman said Monday.

Four RQ-1A Predators and a crew of some 50 people were flown by military transport to Tuzla Air Base in Bosnia, according to Nellis spokesman Mike Estrada.

"They can loiter over one section of territory for long periods of time," Estrada said of the $2.8 million aircraft. "If a commander wants to keep an eye on one highway interesection, or watch an armored vehicle park, they can do it for hours and hours."

The Predator is designed to be deployed in high-risk areas, minimizing the risk to human life. They have a speed up to 80 miles per hour and can fly at altitudes up to 25,000 feet, with a range of 2,300 miles. The Predator has the ability to stay aloft for 24 hours.

The craft would be available for use in nearby Kosovo, where NATO forces are trying to end a bloody civil war.

The Predator transmits data to and is controlled by its ground control station. The normal ground crew includes a pilot, three payload operators and a flight engineer. The aircraft is equipped with a nose camera, used by pilots for flight control, a day TV camera, an infrared camera for use in darkness and radar for looking through smoke and clouds.

"They're not affected by weather," Estrada said. "Their radar has the ability to look through clouds, giving them a picture almost as good as a visual daylight image."

The craft are attached to the 11th Reconnaissance Squadron at Indian Springs, Nev., an auxiliary field for Nellis.

The unit that deployed to Bosnia last week had been operating out of Hungary before it returned to Nellis late last year, Estrada said.

The aircraft flew half a dozen missions over Kosovo last year from Hungary, Estrada said.

One of the aircraft was shot down in Bosnia several years ago, Estrada said, and two have been lost due to mechanical problems.

Another Predator squadron attached to Nellis is currently in Kuwait.