Lt. Gen. Craig McKinley, Air National Guard director, was in California to herald the establishment of March Air Reserve Base as the “centerpiece” for ANG’s evolution into Predator unmanned aerial vehicle operations. At a dedication ceremony Tuesday, McKinley said that ANG personnel from other states destined to pick up a Predator mission will come to March to “learn tactics, techniques, procedures, and how to maintain [the UAVs],” reports the Riverside Press-Enterprise. The 163rd Reconnaissance Wing, formerly the 163rd Air Refueling Wing, at March is the first ANG unit to employ the Predator. Its airmen have been training with active duty Predator units at Creech AFB, Nev.
As commercial companies, universities, and research agencies develop new approaches to operating satellites at lower and lower altitudes, the Space Force is taking notice and considering how it might leverage those advances in both the near and long term.