Developing US European Command's Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance Strategy for Fiscal Years 2010 through 2015

摘要

Despite ongoing DOD investments in ISR platforms, these aircraft will remain LD/ HD assets as long as the United States engages in combat in USCENTCOM. The Balkans conflicts of the 1990s proved that US and allied ISR capabilities are force multipliers in the modern battlespace, prompting senior DOD leaders to take the right step of calling for more ISR resources. These same leaders also acknowledged, however, that the increased demand for ISR would leave them hard pressed to field sufficient numbers of ISR assets to meet global needs. After the 9/11 attacks and subsequent surging of ISR forces to the USCENTCOM area of responsibility, competing COCOMs' ISR requirements could be met only by sharing those forces or rotating them through theaters. This is still the case-a dilemma that causes collection gaps in all commands.