Reports suggest that the US Air Force (USAF) may be all set to create a new job specialty, that of UAV pilots, and may start recruiting people for the job some time later this year. It is likely that the position may in the officer rank.

As UAV pilots the USAF expects to attract those who had applied to be regular pilots, but had failed to make the grade because of minor physical faults. The USAF may be prepared to overlook these faults because it is aware that the current crop of recruits are the X-Box generation that has grown up on video games. Thousands of hours devoted to playing video games may have developed skills that the air force may find quite handy for the job. The US Army uses NCOs to pilot its UAVs, which are generally smaller than those used by the USAF.

Though details of the new recruitment policy are still being worked out, it is possible that UAV pilots may be required to have a commercial, single engine, pilot license. This would give UAV pilots practical experience in an aircraft of roughly the same size and flying characteristics as a Predator. Classroom instruction, however, is expected to be almost identical to that of the pilots of manned aircraft.

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