Children of Aphrodite

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) provide crucial intelligence collection, and lethal targeting capabilities for United States, and other armed forces around the world. In Iraq and Afghanistan, they continue to demonstrate their value to commanders of all services. The United States will even use UAVs as a first line of defense in nations that prefer to keep a lower-profile while supporting U.S. actions within their borders. This is the case in Pakistan, Yemen, and potentially others as well. However, just as nations realized the value of airpower in World War I, many other nations and organizations also see the value in employing UAVs of all sizes. Where the United States employs UAVs as means to perform precision attacks to limit casualties, some non-state actors might use UAVs to spread fear, and possibly chemical or biological attacks. Others see UAVs as a means to conduct covert long-range reconnaissance of targets, transport illicit cargo with limited exposure, or to cause a desired reaction. State actors such as China, Israel, and Iran continue to develop UAVs with multiple capabilities, including air-to-air combat, long-range attacks, and reconnaissance. The U.S. military must improve its limited Counter-UAV doctrine and training programs to address this threat.