An Cosantóir

76 By Sgt. Brendan Cruise FLIGHT PLAN TO THE FUTURE FLIGHT PLAN TO THE FUTURE "A modern, autonomous, and thor- oughly trained Air Force in being at all times will not alone be sufficient, but without it, there can be no national security." General Henry H. Arnold Military Review Volume 26 Issue 2 (1946) A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away or to be a bit more precise, on 20th December 2019, the United States created its first new branch of their armed forces for over 73 years when it established the US Space Force. Its mission is to organise, train, and equip Guardians to conduct global space operations that will enhance the way coalition forces fight, while also offering de- cision makers, military options to achieve nation- al objectives.This development is a sign of the change of direction that US policy has towards dominating the skies. The British Royal Air Force also established their own UK Space Command on 01st April 2021 in what they deemed as a crucial step in the development of a strategy to operate in space and protect UK interests. Within the next 100 years the Irish government may decide to follow suit and create their very own Cór Spáis na hÉireann in order to secure our own national interests via the skies, although this scenario is unlikely as of this date no Irish person has ever travelled into space, not even as one of the new generation super rich space tourists, and Irelands first satellite Educational Irish Research Satellite 1 or EIRSAT-1 has yet to be launched. However as aspirational as this may seem, there are other areas that the Irish Air Corps may develop in the not so near future that may help secure key interests. The most obvious capacity which could be focused upon is that of uninhabited aircraft, drones. By 2040 the British RAF expect that it will operate a small number of aircraft which then work with, or direct, a larger number of drones, estimated to be a 20/80 ratio. This trend is likely to be seen in other militaries across the globe as there has been an increasing reliant upon deploy - ing drones for opera- tional purposes. Within the Irish Air Corps, drones could be utilised but not limited to the majority of its designated roles, the long duration of Maritime Operations patrolling over vast waters without the worry of crew fatigue would make them ideal. Their versatility in intelli - gence, surveillance and reconnaissance purpos- es could be exploited by the State in the event of a new cold war or by GASU if we return to a hard border courtesy of Brexit or by troops when de- ployed overseas. If equipped with proper thermal imaging cameras the use of drones for Search and Rescue missions would be invaluable. There could be a situation whereby the Government of Ireland may change the current policy of neutral- ity and so drones could be deployed in conduct- ing airstrikes with an array of bombs, missiles and other munitions. The extent of the impact that weaponised drones have had in warfare, could not have been imagined since the first suc- cessful drone strike took place in January 2001, but drones are remotely piloted by humans, they are not "terminator-like" killing machines. It is vital to remember that Wars are fought by people, and while technol- ogy has continu- ally changed how they are fought, there still exists an expectation of ethics regarding the deployment of any type of drone, be it intelligence gathering or tar - get neutralisation. It is only a matter of time before the Irish Air Corps are equipped with a squadron of drones, indeed it would be difficult to see a future without them; such is their diversity in roles, their endur- ance capabilities and the volume of procure- ment options. In addition to the traditional drone manufacturers of China, Israel, Turkey and the US, there now exists new offerings of large drone companies in Russia, Italy, and South Africa, along with many other local research and devel- opment projects. Add to this the declining cost of US Space Force Insignia Global Hawk Surveillance Drone(wired.com)

• Cover