CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nev., March 9 (UPI) -- U.S. Air Force officials announced a milestone achievement in the deployment of the MQ-1B Predator unmanned aircraft.
The 15th Reconnaissance Squadron announced the number of combat hours completed by the Predator unmanned aerial vehicle program recently surpassed 500,000, the Air Force reported.
The number of flight hours the Predator has completed in combat missions marks a major achievement for the UAV technology widely deployed for reconnaissance and surveillance operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"The 15th Reconnaissance Squadron currently flies 28 percent of all MQ-1 Predator combat air patrols over Iraq and Afghanistan, and we're able to meet the needs of the joint force commanders for this no-fail combat operations mission because of the hard work and dedication of our total force team of active-duty Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard Airmen here," Lt. Col. Ken Callahan, the 15th Reconnaissance Squadron director of operations, said in a statement.