One of the highlights of UVS International’s RPAS 2012 Conference in Paris on June 5 – 7, will be on the second day, when the UK and French armies give a back-to-back presentation on “Operational Experience & Lessons Learned” in the deployment of UAS in Afghanistan. Colonel Gilles Randreau of the 61st Artillery Regiment in the French Army and Lieutenant-Colonel Craig Palmer, of 32 Regiment Royal Army will give the presentations.
Lieutenant-Colonel Palmer was commissioned in to the Royal Regiment of Artillery in 1993 and initially served with 29th Commando Regiment Royal Artillery in Plymouth as a Command Post Officer and Forward Observation Officer. Following an UNFICYP tour in Cyprus and considerable amounts of cross-country skiing, he was posted to his first of 4 tours with 32nd Regiment Royal Artillery, where he served as a battery second in command and Adjutant.
Upon promotion to Major he was posted to an appointment at HQ RA 3 (UK) Div and then served as the Operations Officer for 7th Parachute Regiment Royal Horse Artillery during Operation TELIC 1; the invasion of Iraq. He subsequently attended Advanced Command and Staff Course Number 8 and returned to 32nd Regiment as the Battery Commander of 18 (Quebec 1759) Battery equipped with the PHOENIX ramp-launched Tactical Unmanned Aerial System (TUAS). He developed the DESERT HAWK 1+ Mini UAS (MUAS) and brought this in to service by deploying the Battery to the hot and high environment of Afghanistan on Operation HERRICK 4 in May 2006, supporting 3 Para and 16 Air Assault Brigade.
This established the initial UK Unmanned Air System (UAS) capability in Afghanistan and also the UK’s first MUAS capability. He then spent 2 years in the Ministry of Defence as Chief of Staff, Directorate of Capability Special Projects (DEC SP). Upon promotion to Lieutenant-Colonel, he deployed to Afghanistan as SO1 J3 Capability and was responsible for the generation of all UK equipment capability requirements. He was then selected to be part of the newly formed Directorate of Force Development (DFD) and was responsible for generating Army Force Development initiatives within the wider strategic context.
Lieutenant Colonel Palmer returned to 32nd Regiment as Commanding Officer in May 2011. He is married and has three children. He enjoys being a husband and father and, when time permits, also enjoys athletics, cross-country skiing and watching rugby from a safe distance. He has neither the ability nor inclination to take up golf.
Colonel Gilles Randreau was commissioned into the French Army in September 1989. On completion of the gunner and IMINT course, he was posted to the 7th Artillery Regiment as UAS platoon leader. He completed four operational tours in Bosnia and commanded a UAS battery between 1997 and 1999. In 1999, he was posted to a divisional headquarters. In 2003, he attended the Army Advanced Staff course, Paris. After one year, he was posted to the Army technical section as program officer of air defense missiles. In 2006, he was the Ops chief of 61st Artillery Regiment (UAS Rgt). After an operational tour in Ivory Coast, he was the officer in charge of UAS programmes in the Army staff, from 2008 to 2011. In 2011, he became the commanding officer of the 61st Artillery Regiment.
ABSTRACT
Deployed in Afghanistan since 2008, the French Sperwer tactical UAS have been performing a wide panel of missions, from convoy and force protection to intelligence missions. More than 750 missions were performed, sometimes in bad weather conditions, in order to provide forces with specific intel support. What is interesting to notice is the way this type of system evolved, in accordance with the users’ requests. The type of operations in Afghanistan showed the necessity of using tactical UAS as a dedicated asset of the French task force. At the moment, the project to replace the Sperwer system in the years to come are oriented towards a Franco-British cooperation.
To download a registration form to attend the conference, click here.