USS McInerney is getting near final stages of preparation for the first deployment of the MQ-8B Fire Scout. So far, SH-60 pilots have been used to fly Fire Scout, but Navy has seen FAA warm up to idea of enlisted "pilots" after Air Force experienced more mishaps attributed to its rated aviators than Army did with its enlisted pilots. So Navy will send enlisted operators to school to get a commercial pilot's license and turn over control to them as an experimental trial. Full article in Navy Times.
090508-N-2821G-146 ATLANTIC OCEAN (May 8, 2009) The Northrop Grumman Corporation-developed Unmanned Aerial Vehicle MQ-8B Fire Scout hovers over the flight deck of the guided-missile frigate USS McInerney (FFG 8). McInerney is preparing for an upcoming counter-illicit trafficking deployment to Latin America, where the ship is scheduled to use Fire Scout to assist with counter-drug operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Alan Gragg/Released)
090508-N-2821G-146 ATLANTIC OCEAN (May 8, 2009) The Northrop Grumman Corporation-developed Unmanned Aerial Vehicle MQ-8B Fire Scout hovers over the flight deck of the guided-missile frigate USS McInerney (FFG 8). McInerney is preparing for an upcoming counter-illicit trafficking deployment to Latin America, where the ship is scheduled to use Fire Scout to assist with counter-drug operations. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Alan Gragg/Released)
