Canadian Forces to Conduct Major UAV Trial

Master Warrant Officer (MWO) Sonny Rose familiarizes himself with the Payload Operator Controls for the Altair CU-163301.

OTTAWA – From August 22 to August 31, 2004, the Canadian Forces will conduct a major experiment involving “uninhabited aerial vehicles” (UAVs) and integrated intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) architectures on Baffin Island and in Atlantic Canada. An initiative of the Canadian Forces Experimentation Centre (CFEC) in Ottawa, the Atlantic Littoral Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) Experiment, or “ALIX”, is the most recent live trial to be conducted as part of Canadian research into the potential military uses of UAVs.

“Defence is an important member of the Government's national security team,” said Mauril Bélanger, Associate Minister of National Defence. “This exercise will help the Canadian Forces develop a set of capabilities that will also be of value to other Government departments, as well as to our allies and key international partners.”

Altair CU-163301, a medium-altitude, long-endurance Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle (UAV), taxies to the runway for takeoff at 5 Wing Goose Bay. The aircraft will conduct Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance (ISR) activities over Baffin Island and Atlantic Canada.

The ALIX is designed to address recognized CF deficiencies in the areas of ISR and command and control. Its three phases will each feature a flight by the Altair, a medium-altitude, long-endurance UAV. One phase will also include a flight by a new CF asset, the Silver Fox mini UAV.

“The ALIX will be a very helpful step toward defining the contribution that UAVs can make to a better common operational picture for CF deployments in all environments,” said General Raymond Henault, the Chief of the Defence Staff. “The result will be enhanced operational effectiveness for the CF, both at home and abroad.”

Each Altair flight will last about 23 hours, and involve use of an exercise scenario:

• a domestic emergency in the southern sector of Baffin Island, coinciding with a major training exercise with Canadian Forces Northern Area
• a peace-support operation in the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the Gagetown area of New Brunswick area, coinciding with the annual concentration exercise of the Army Reserve units of Land Forces Atlantic Area and involving the Silver Fox; and
• a domestic security or defence of Canada operation in the waters of the Grand Banks, east of Newfoundland.

All three flights will be launched from and recovered at 5 Wing Goose Bay in Labrador.

SEE VIDEO: UAV (Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle)

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