ScanEagle Proves Worth in Fallujah Fight
By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service
FALLUJAH, Iraq, Jan. 11, 2005 -- It's called ScanEagle, and it has already
saved the lives of many Marines.
ScanEagle is an unmanned aerial vehicle that the Marines used during Operation
Al Fajr, the coalition operation to remove insurgents from this city.
A Boeing contractor explains the workings of the ScanEagle
unmanned aerial vehicle to visiting military analysts. The UAV has been
credited with the lives of a number of Marines during the fighting in Fallujah
in 2004. Photo by Jim Garamone
(Click photo for screen-resolution
image); high-resolution image
available. |
The ScanEagle system, developed by Boeing and the Insitu Group of Bingen,
Wash., had its baptism of fire during some of the heaviest urban combat Marines
have been involved in since Hue City in Vietnam in 1968. The UAV performed
flawlessly, 1st Marine Expeditionary Force officials said today.
ScanEagle is a relatively low-cost UAV at $100,000 a copy. But its real worth
was giving Marines in Fallujah a real-time picture of the enemy and helping
them close with and kill insurgents without becoming casualties.
Driven by a small propeller, the aircraft can stay airborne for 19 hours on
just a gallon and a half of gas.
It is a "launch-and-forget" system. A catapult launches the 40-pound aircraft,
and a computer operator just clicks the cursor over the area of interest. The
aircraft operates autonomously.
The cameras -- either for day or night -- have enough definition to identify
individuals and show if they are carrying weapons. "This was a true advantage
for us during the operation," said Marine Col. John Coleman, chief of staff for
the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force. The rules of engagement were such that
Marines could not engage unless they were sure the proposed target was carrying
a weapon or intent on harming coalition forces.
ScanEagle enabled commanders to ascertain targets and provided specific
coordinates via the Global Positioning System.
The system can also track moving targets. ScanEagle gives commanders at several
different levels real-time video. With the explosive growth of using the Web in
warfare, commanders many miles away can direct the system.
All of this is not bad for a system designed to find tuna fish. Insitu
developed the aircraft to be launched and recovered by tuna boats. Fishermen
would use the UAV to spot schools of tuna.
When the Marines needed another UAV system, they contracted with Boeing in June
2004 for ScanEagle and the contractors to run it. Four Boeing employees
answered the call, and ScanEagles were soon flying missions over the most
dangerous city in Iraq.
The UAV is small and tough to see, said Marine officials. The contractors put
the mufflers pointing up so that the enemy couldn't track the aircraft by
sound. The Marines operate the aircraft at a very low altitude and lost only
one to enemy fire during the weeks of intelligence gathering leading up to
Operation Al Fajr.
The Marines already use the Pioneer UAV and have access to other UAV
information. The ScanEagle has a small footprint. Manning for the system is
small, and all the system needs to operate can be carried in four Humvees.
The Pioneer, one of the oldest UAVs in the inventory, needs a runway to operate
from and several C-130s to transport the system. And it requires 120 people to
operate it.
Marine officials are impressed with the ScanEagle system, and have shown the
system's capabilities to Army, Navy and Air Force officials.
Marine officials do not know the true extent of the system's use. "You never
really know until the Marines push the capabilities," Coleman said. "Our young
Marines are the experts. They know what they need, and they have the knowledge
to try new methods and stretch the capabilities of most pieces of equipment."
 | Boeing contractors pose with the ScanEagle outside the 1st
Marine Expeditionary Force in Fallujah. The unmanned aerial vehicle provided
top-flight intelligence during the battle for Fallujah in 2004. Photo by Jim
Garamone
|  | High resolution photo.
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