Thursday, March 3, 2005 | 11:01 a.m.
The success of the the Southern Nevada-based Predator in combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan is leading to a major expansion of the Air Force's remote-piloted aircraft program and infrastructure at Indian Springs Auxiliary Airfield.
"We're sitting in the middle of a Predator explosion," said Lt. Col. John Harris, commander of the 15th Reconnaissance Squadron. "The top tier bad guys in the world are walking around looking over their shoulder because they know we can take them out surgically at any time with the Predator.
"We can take them out one at a time, in the street, at day or at night."
Currently the Air Force has about 80 of the Hellfire missile-armed aircraft divided between the 11th, 15th and 17th Reconnaissance Squadrons and based at Indian Springs, 45 miles northwest of Nellis Air Force Base. By 2010 the number of Predator units could expand to 15 to 17 squadrons based all over the world, Harris said.
The expansion would make the approximately $4 million aircraft second only to F-16 Falcons in terms of numbers of aircraft in the Air Force. The first two new squadrons are tabbed for Texas and Arizona, although specific bases and a timeline for the new squadrons to become operational have not yet been determined.
All of the Air Force's Predators except three are MQ-1 models, meaning that they have been retrofitted to fire Hellfire missiles. About 500 airmen are involved in the day-to-day operations of the Predators, flying missions in Iraq and Afghanistan from remote control pods at Nellis and Indian Springs.
Maj. Gen. Stephen Goldfein, commander of the Air Warfare Center at Nellis, said construction is already starting at Indian Springs to accommodate the growing Predator program, and should really accelerate at the end of this year and in 2006.
"There is about $25 million allocated in this year's fiscal budget, and about $60-$65 million next fiscal year for new hangars and infrastructure at Indian Springs," Goldfein said. "We've been loading Indian Springs with Predators for 10 years, but the base is designed as an auxiliary or emergency field, but that no longer fits for what we're doing out there."
An Air Force site activation task force is scheduled this month to visit Indian Springs and reassess the status of Indian Springs for possible increase to the level of station or base under the control of Nellis, Goldfein said.
"Right now we have about 2,500 people out there (stationed at Indian Springs), and you can compare that to Cannon Air Force Base in New Mexico where they have a full fighter wing but only about 3,000 people," Goldfein said.
The demand for Predators has not only put stress on the infrastructure at Indian Springs, but also on the pilots, maintainers and sensor operators who are called on to constantly fly missions, said Maj. Michael Bruzzini, the flight commander of the 15th Reconnaissance Squadron who is in Iraq with the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron.
"The Predator is a victim of its own success," Bruzzini said in a phone interview Tuesday from Balad Air Base in northern Iraq. "Everyone wants to use the capabilities that it provides."
Those capabilities include the ability to fly for 24 hours at a time at speeds as high as 120 mph, reach altitudes of 20,000 feet, provide real time video feeds to ground troops and to attack with two Hellfire missiles.
Bruzzini and skeleton crews of five to 10 airmen from Nellis are deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan in order to maintain, launch and land the Predators, but once in the air control is transferred via satellites to pilots in Southern Nevada.
The forward crews are rotated about every three months because of the heavy workload that has included 80,000 Predator flight hours since Sept. 11, 2001, Harris said.
At Balad, Bruzzini commands six airmen that split into two crews each taking a 12-hour shift on the Predator every day.
"We're 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year," Bruzzini said "It's a lot of work, but it's a humbling experience to be part of saving lives every day."
One recent mission that showcases the Predator's capabilities involved Predator operators spotting three men climb out of trees and begin digging holes along a road in Iraq.
"We watched them for a while and the sensor operator hit on a signature for an IED (improvised explosive device)," Harris said. "That intelligence was sent to the Army on the ground, and they were able to put up two helicopters who were able to fly over and fire rockets."
Two of the men were killed in the rocket attack and the third fled back into the trees, Harris said. The Predator continued to fly overhead and after a couple of hours the third man left the forested area and operators were able to follow him to his home using the Predator.
That information was also relayed to the Army and a force of Humvees was sent to the home where the man was found with explosive paraphernalia and was arrested.
On Tuesday the Predator officially moved out of testing and into its initial operations phase, even though it has been successfully used since 1995 in Bosnia.
"The Predator is a little different because we've been able to put it into combat and have it working while we've been developing and testing it," said Goldfein, who added that the impact of the Predator on U.S. war-fighting capabilities is comparable to the significance of strategic bombing by allied forces in World War II.
Bruzzini, who is scheduled to return home to Las Vegas soon, said he is often thanked by soldiers in Iraq who have been bailed out of tight situations by the Predator.
"I miss my family, but seeing these guys reacting with such gratitude humbles you," said Bruzzini, who has a wife and two young sons in Las Vegas. "If it costs me a couple of trips over here (to Iraq) to be able to help some of these ground troops get home to their families then it is worthwhile."
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