Drone operators to get better training 11.12.12
13An inquiry into why an unmanned British aircraft crashed in Afghanistan last year has recommended an overhaul of training.
The Hermes drone came down in Camp Bastion last October -- after an engine overheated.
Members of 32 Regiment Royal Artillery were operating it.
The increased heat in the engine was noticed about two hours into the mission, and when it went out of normal range the decision was made to bring it back.
However, a manual landing was complicated by equipment parked close to the runway, and the automated landing had failed because it appeared some data had been wrongly loaded.
The aircraft hit an empty US marines hanger, before sliding approximately 100 metres along the ground, and breaking in two.
21 of the inquiry's recommendations are about training, competency and qualifications.
The report calls for a redesign of the Royal Artillery's level three course for unmanned aerial systems.
A debate has also taken place at Westminster debating the use of UAV's and setting out the views of both the government and the opposition on the ethics behind their use, and their future.