EGLIN, Fla., Sept. 1 (UPI) -- The U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command is reactivating its 11th Intelligence Squadron in a global effort to combat terrorism.
The 11th Intelligence Squadron, under the Air Force Special Operations Command, is commanded by Lt. Col. David Hambleton and assigned to AFSOC's war-fighting headquarters.
The Air Force Print Network reported Aug. 29 from Hurlburt Field, Fla., that the 11th Intelligence Squadron's mission is to send to field commanders analyzed data gathered by AFSOC's MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial vehicles and other airborne intelligence and surveillance intelligence gathering platforms. The MQ-1 Predator is under the control of the 3rd Special Operations Squadron based at Creech Air Force Base, Nev.
Creech analysts remotely fly Predators worldwide with a 24-7 timeframe.
U.S. Special Operations Command commander Army Gen. Doug Brown says that when the system is fully operational it will provide an "unblinking eye" for special operations forces.
AFSOF vice commander Col. Timothy Leahy said: "We're going to extract intel value from data streams coming off (reconnaissance aircraft), figure out what the bad guys are doing and provide information to special ops commanders so they can make combat decisions. Basically, the 3rd SOS will provide the data, and we'll tailor it for the SOF customer forward."
