The Air Force would get funds in its proposed 2016 budget to increase combat air patrols for MQ-9 Reaper pilots, according to a report in Air Force Times.
The budget would cover 60 patrols in a 24-hour period, up from 55, said Air Force spokeswoman Vicki Stein. In addition, the budget would cover five patrols a day for the older MQ-1 Predator, for a total of 65 combat air patrols per day.
By raising the number of combat air patrols for Reapers, the Air Force is acknowledging that it cannot throttle back on the number of missions that remotely piloted aircraft pilots fly, said Peter Singer, of the New America Foundation think tank in Washington, D.C. A potential coming shortage of UAV pilots has been a worry for some time.
