drones, also known as Unmanned Aerial Vehicles or UAVs, are gadgets that have been developed to carry out surveillance of a high order with special emphasis on military operations. They have proved their worth many times over in wars and operations against terrorists in far flung areas, and now, the government wants them to deploy drones for Border Security. The demand is not only for drones, but also for drone operators.
Usefulness of drones
Fox News reports that in the U.S. Air Force, there are more vacancies for operators of MQ-1 Predator drones and MQ-9 Reaper drones as compared to jobs for other types of pilots. This is per information furnished by the head of Air Education and Training Command. Usefulness of drones has been proved in various commercial applications. It is, therefore, a natural choice for those who guard the borders.
Customs and Border Protection people want to induct smaller drones to assist in border security because these can save not only time and money, but also lives. Hence they have initiated action to hasten the procurement process and hope to rope in Silicon Valley to develop drones that will act as eyes of the agents so that they can see beyond their line of vision.
They can, thus, provide coverage to a wider area without sacrificing or comprising their safety.
As Kevin McAleenan, CBP's acting commissioner puts it – border security agents want to see what lies beyond the next hill and also, know details of the opposition. Availability of advance information like the number of people and their weapons can be vital in planning strategies to tackle them.
Silicon Valley to the rescue
The Department of Homeland Security wants Silicon Valley to tweak existing technology so that it fits border security needs. A radar manufacturer in Seattle nabbed one of the first contracts worth $118,000, and it involves cutting-edge sensors that can be mounted on a small drone. It would be able to measure the distance between objects irrespective of poor weather conditions or moving targets, and would be helpful in terms of safeguarding agents.