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New jobs depend on future of unmanned aircraft, say business leaders

File photo Global Hawk unmanned aerial vehicle approaching Edwards Air Force Base in California at the end of a test flight

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By Jessica Wehrman, Staff Writer Updated 4:59 PM Sunday, August 16, 2009

WASHINGTON — Dayton business leaders are betting on the future of unmanned aerial vehicles as a key part of their strategy for bringing jobs to the community.

And that’s why we should all pay attention to the future of the Global Hawk.

The Hawk is an unmanned aerial vehicle which does a little of what the U-2 has traditionally done — and then some. It’s largely used as a surveillance aircraft, and flies at about 60,000 feet. The program is managed at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base. It’s flown 33,400 program hours so far. Of that, 25,000 have been in combat.

But funding for the bill’s most recent incarnation, the Block 40, is in jeopardy. The House Appropriations Committee earlier this year passed a bill that included cuts of $280 million in procurement and $50 million in long-term advanced development on the Hawk. Northrop Grumman, which manufactures the aircraft, said such cuts could delay development of the most recent block and endanger men on the ground.

“The number one shortfall is ground moving target indications,” said Ed Walby, the Global Hawk’s business development director. He said the Global Hawk is fitted with technology that can make it easier to detect the explosives on the ground that currently pose such a threat to soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He said he feels confident the Senate will restore funding cuts — but you’re never really sure until the ink is dry on the bill. Until then, he and other Northrop Grumman officials will lobby vociferously for their aircraft.

“I hope to God the warfighter wins,” he said. “Without this, the capability won’t get deployed and it won’t help troops overseas. It’s a good cut if you want to save government money, but I think soldiers’ lives are more important than 300 or 400 million dollars.”

Here’s where we come in: The Global Hawk represents an increasing share of what the region looks to as its bread and butter.

For further proof, look to last week’s conference in Washington, D.C., on unmanned vehicles.

Three top officials of the Dayton Development Coalition showed up, bearing brochures on the Dayton region. They hope to use the fact that Wright-Pat serves as the program manager for winged, unmanned aerial vehicles as catnip for companies involved in the production of such vehicles.

Jim Leftwich, president and CEO of the coalition, said the coalition wanted to remind companies of Dayton’s links to UAV production.

“Instead of waiting for the phone to ring, we’re going out to find new business,” he said.

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