Does it surprise you to learn that private firms are at the heart of U.S. drone warfare?

GySgt Wayne A. Ekblad — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 04:58:09 -0400

The overstretched US military has hired hundreds of private-sector contractors to the heart of its drone operations to analyze top-secret video feeds and help track suspected terrorist leaders, an investigation has found.

Contracts unearthed by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism reveal a secretive industry worth hundreds of millions of dollars, placing a corporate workforce alongside uniformed personnel analyzing intelligence from areas of interest.

While it has long been known that US defense firms supply billions of dollars’ worth of equipment for drone operations, the role of the private sector in supplying analysts for combing through intelligence material has remained almost entirely unknown until now.

Approximately one in 10 people involved in the effort to process data captured by drones and spy planes are non-military. And as the rise of Islamic State prompts what one commander termed “insatiable” demand for aerial surveillance, the Pentagon is considering further expanding its use of contractors, an air force official said.

Companies that stand to reap the benefits include BAE Systems and Edward Snowden’s former employer Booz Allen Hamilton.

The US dependence on armed contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan has attracted close scrutiny, partly because of the notorious 2007 incident in which employees of the company then known as Blackwater killed 14 civilians in Baghdad. But the use of private companies in drone operations has so far happened largely under the radar.

Read more at ...

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/revealed-private-firms-at-heart-of-us-drone-warfare/ar-AAdHX6O

Revealed: Private firms at heart of US drone warfare

Corporate staff are reviewing top-secret data and helping uniformed colleagues decide whether people under surveillance are enemies or civilians

Response by SGM Steve Wettstein made Jul 31 at 2015 6:37 AM

SGM Steve Wettstein — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 06:37:10 -0400

GySgt Wayne A. Ekblad this does not surprise me. DoD seems to be contracting everything out now a days.

Response by COL Vincent Stoneking made Jul 31 at 2015 9:10 AM

COL Vincent Stoneking — Fri, 31 Jul 2015 09:10:29 -0400

Nope. Highly technical work. We generally push people to hold many positions and be "well rounded." When the details matter, it helps to have the guy who has been doing similar work for 10-15 years be doing it. This is at the heart of why we have contractors in a lot of positions, and why I have endorsed bringing back the SPC 5-7 ranks.

Response by LCDR Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 1 at 2015 4:13 AM

LCDR Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 01 Aug 2015 04:13:11 -0400

It doesn't surprise me very much but probably would have before I got into acquisition. We do a lot less organically than I previously believed.