Democracy Gone Astray

Democracy, being a human construct, needs to be thought of as directionality rather than an object. As such, to understand it requires not so much a description of existing structures and/or other related phenomena but a declaration of intentionality.
This blog aims at creating labeled lists of published infringements of such intentionality, of points in time where democracy strays from its intended directionality. In addition to outright infringements, this blog also collects important contemporary information and/or discussions that impact our socio-political landscape.

All the posts here were published in the electronic media – main-stream as well as fringe, and maintain links to the original texts.

[NOTE: Due to changes I haven't caught on time in the blogging software, all of the 'Original Article' links were nullified between September 11, 2012 and December 11, 2012. My apologies.]

Wednesday, November 23, 2011

Canada Military Drones: ScanEagle, Unmanned Aircraft, To Be Deployed On Mediterranean Missions

OTTAWA - Canadian warships will soon be deploying drones on overseas operations.

The crew of HMCS Charlottetown is currently testing the lightweight ScanEagle, a leased, unmanned aircraft the army used to great effect in Afghanistan.

Vice-Admiral Paul Maddison, head of the Royal Canadian Navy, says the idea is to deploy the drone when the frigate heads back to the Mediterranean next year as part of the government's recently announced plan to keep a warship in the region throughout 2012.

But instead of hunting for Taliban planting roadside bombs, Maddison says the plane will provide surveillance over both sea and land.

The Canadian navy has experimented with drones, but the use of the ScanEagle represents the first step towards their introduction into service.

The ScanEagle, with a three-metre wing-span, is capable of staying airborne for 20 hours and carries an infrared camera as well as a radar system.

It's launched by catapult and lands by snagging a wire.

Maddison says the drone is not a substitute for the vessel's aging Sea King helicopter, but will enhance the warship's existing capability.

"A UAV provides an excellent capability ... to do that surveillance and reconnaissance," he said. "We saw this as a real opportunity."

The frigate is currently testing the drone off the coast of Nova Scotia.

American warships have used unmanned aircraft since 2005 and defence experts say they've proven themselves especially valuable tracking pirates in the Gulf Aden and in the waters off Somalia.

Maddison made the comments in a teleconference while visiting HMCS Vancouver, which has been directed to join NATO's standing counter-terrorism mission in the Mediterranean.

The ship will be relieved next year by the Charlottetown, which has taken aboard an entirely new crew since it returned in September from taking part in the Libya campaign.

The Canadian army and air force have had extensive experience with drones, which are becoming a big part of military operations.

The ScanEagle is too small to carry weapons and will only be used for reconnaissance.

Origin
Source: Huff 

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