BDF intelligence trained by US Army

VICTOR MUYAKWABO
Staff Writer | Tuesday August 21, 2012 00:00

 

The US Army brought a very small drone that is used to spy on the enemy line, the drone is shaped like an aircraft and has an inbuilt camera that takes pictures. According to some military personal within the US Army the drone can be flown very high in the sky so that it is not visible to enemies and take very clear pictures.The drone or the Unmanned Arial Vehicle that was brought by the US Army is called 'Raven' and is launched by a hand.According to information from a source the drone is called Raven because of the little engine fleet in the unmanned aerial vehicle.

The drone is also said to be weighing in at four and a half pounds with a five-foot wingspan and stretching a mere 38 inches in length, the Raven is by far one of the smallest vehicles in the Army.According to information from the US Army the Raven's aerial reconnaissance value has quickly earned the respect of battalion commanders in Iraq and has filled a niche at the battalion level when larger UAVs are unavailable.However, the BDF has been using larger drones or UAV such as the Hunter, Shadow and Inet.

It is reported that the UAV is small and can be transported easily in three small cases that fit into a rucksack. The crew can bring it with them and operate wherever the patrol goes.The Raven has three different cameras that attach to the nose of the plane, an electrical optical camera that sends data either through a nose camera or a side camera, an infrared camera in the nose, and a side-mounted IR camera. The US Army made a demonstration of how the spy drone they were using during the exercise works at the Makanke range, where the two forces were demonstrating what they were doing in the anti poaching and hostage rescue exercise. Meanwhile the deputy commander of the Botswana Defence Force, Major General Placid Segokgo was quoted saying, BDF is now in a position to conduct their own intelligence training after the exercise.Segokgo said this at the closing ceremony of exercise Southern Accord 12, which was held in the Kweneng Region for the past two weeks.

'I am glad to note that through this cooperation our intelligence establishment has graduated from recipients of training to being able to conduct their own training,' said Segokgo.He said through Botswana Tactical Intelligence Course (BTIC) I & II, which were based on the train the trainer model, the Military Intelligence has been able to produce its own instructors capable of training their troops to the desired levels.  'I am reliably informed that some of the graduates of these programs were deployed during the exercise and acquitted themselves very well,' said Segokgo.Segokgo said the Force Training Establishment, which is mandated with the task of producing quality soldiers and officers, has also benefitted as they have had US teams visiting to exchange ideas on the art of training soldiers.

He said likewise, the FTE personnel have also had the opportunity to visit training institutions in the US to observe first-hand the US way of doing business. According to the deputy commander this has gone a long way in new programs and assisting the FTE come up with even improve the existing ones.The spokesperson of BDF Colonel Tebo Dikole told Mmegi that the Americans brought a different type of drone than the one that is used by the BDF.