Oh dear…
I’m retired now, thankfully; however I worked on CASTOR I know where this thing came from and why, and what it can and can’t do. What do you think a SAR/GMTI image on its own actually shows? I am also very aware of the strong
PR job being done on its behalf, which is understandable but questionable.
Mr BlackadderIA - I’m not suggesting a UAV can do the job that the Sentinel does.
I am suggesting that the only job that the Sentinel can do is unnecessary now that the original (Cold War) role does not exist. There are far more, better capable 24/7 space-based sensors available to the French military for wide area coverage. I question its use in the UK Military at all. We have it so we are trying to justify its existence to avoid the embarrassment of spending so much for so long to get so little.
I find it interesting that the USAF U-2 with its very fine ASARS-2 and the E-8C J-STARS have both been quiet in recent military actions.
Did you know that we were offered into the U-2 programme in the 80’s by the US when all the inter-service squabbling took place? We told them that ‘we could come up with something better.’ J-STARS is in a different league, I doubt if we will ever need to see ‘that big a picture’ ever again.
My feeling here is that the good people operating and supporting the Sentinel (whom I support unreservedly) are being used for
PR reasons. The UK will look good supporting our ally (nothing wrong with that). I seriously question whether there will ever be any real significant military contribution from this platform.
Yes there are more cuts coming, and we have all seen too many. But don’t shed a tear when Sentinel goes, we will lose a sensor we currently do not need that is all. A wide spectrum of information gathering will still continue (it only becomes ‘intelligence’ when it is acted upon correctly).
Sweets? Nobody offered me sweets…