New Predator aircraft unit delayed

Jace Radke

Monday, April 19, 2004 | 9:25 a.m.

A new Predator remote-piloted aircraft unit combining elements of active duty military personnel with the National Guard has been put on hold because of questions about the chain of command for the blended unit.

Nevada National Guard adjutant general Maj. Gen. Giles Vanderhoof said that he expected to meet with officials from the Pentagon next week about the unit that previously had been scheduled to become operational the end of this month or in early May.

The unit, which would also include members of the California National Guard, is supposed to be an example of Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John Jumper's plan to better use military resources.

Gen. Hal Hornberg, head of Air Combat Command, put the unit on hold because of legal questions involving the chain of command for the unit, Vanderhoof said.

National Guard soldiers' chain of command is linked to the governor of their state under Title 32 of the U.S. Code. Under that section of the code, National Guard soldiers can be called to active duty to serve under the command of the regular armed forces, military officials said.

At issue is who would be in command in the blended unit during its day-to-day operation in Nevada.

"We're looking for a way to solve the problem, and I hope we can because I think this is not only good for the Nevada and California Guard and Reserves but good for the armed forces," Vanderhoof said.

A spokeswoman with Air Combat Command in Virginia said that the command is working with the guard and reserves on the issue.

Vanderhoof said that he thought that the problem could be worked out through cooperation, with commanding officers ordering their soldiers to fall under the command of whoever was the best person for a job or situation, whether it was a guard or reserve officer or an active duty Air Force officer.

Lawyers with the judge advocate general's office have questioned the legality of such an arrangement.

"The way the budget is going there are going to have to be some synergies or we're all going to be lacking," Vanderhoof said.

The idea behind the blended unit is to combine the experience of the guard and reserves with active duty units, while providing the country with a fourth Predator unit.

Predators have been among the busiest units in the Air Force during the last two years, with pilots at Nellis remotely flying surveillance and attack missions over Afghanistan and Iraq.

Currently Nellis Air Force Base has three Predator Squadrons located at the Indian Springs Auxiliary Airfield about 45 miles northwest of Las Vegas. The 15th and the 11th Recon Squadrons have about 40 Predator RQ-1 aircraft between them.

The newer 17th Recon Squadron has not received its allocation of Predators yet. The new blended unit would also likely be stationed at Indian Springs.

The National Guard and Reserves already work with the Air Force under Air Mobility Command, which oversees the Air Force's cargo operations, but a blended unit is almost unheard-of under Air Combat Command, Nellis officials said.