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Unmanned Aerial Systems

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

Provided by U.S. Army Office of the Provost Marshal General

What is it?

The Army antiterrorism awareness theme for the first quarter (October through December) of fiscal year 2017 is Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS).

The Army recognizes there are risks associated with the potential for an adversary’s use of UAS to plan, prepare, and execute threat activities against Army information, people, and facilities. As such, the Army’s antiterrorism programs are actively and continuously synchronizing the possibility of UAS threats and protection-related initiatives to deter, detect, and mitigate the potential impact of UAS against Army assets.

As technology advances and prices decrease, commercially available UAS (also commonly referred to as drones) will become increasingly affordable and available to the public. Due to their growing availability, UAS platforms will become increasingly susceptible to exploitation by terrorist organizations or radicalized homegrown violent extremists, who may seek to conduct surveillance or attacks through the use or modification of UAS.

The primary audience for this theme is antiterrorism officers/coordinators and leaders at all levels who are responsible for planning measures to counter the potential risk of UAS activity. Products supporting this theme include information to educate Army community members who may either own and operate UAS or who may observe suspicious UAS activity.

What has the Army done?

The Army’s communication and UAS informational products seek to:

  • Enhance community awareness of the authorized and prohibited use of UAS.
  • Provide information to UAS owners and users on mandatory UAS registration requirements.
  • Inform the the public on how to report suspicious UAS activity.
  • Promote information and resources for UAS operators and law enforcement officials.

What continued efforts are planned for the future?

The Army continues to work on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of its antiterrorism efforts. Other quarterly themes and special events planned through FY17 include:

  • Irregular/Asymmetric Warfare (second quarter, fiscal year 2017)
  • Annual Antiterrorism Conference (February 2017)
  • Linking Antiterrorism Strategy, Policy and Plans (third quarter, fiscal year 2017)
  • Violent Extremism Awareness (fourth quarter, fiscal year 2017)
  • Antiterrorism Awareness Month (August 2017; pre-decisional)

Why is this important to the Army?

The Army must protect the force and safeguard people, information, and facilities. The UAS products developed by the Office of the Provost Marshall General (Antiterrorism Division) and posted to Army Antiterrorism Enterprise Portal (ATEP) (see resources section below) assist the force by educating the community on evolving laws and rules for the use of UAS as well as the potential risk of an adversary’s use of UAS.

Resources:

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