JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq -- Maj. John Chesser operates the controls of an MQ-9 Reaper cockpit during a demonstration here Aug. 1. The Reaper is an unmanned aerial system designed to hunt down and kill enemy targets, and its long loiter time and 3,750-pound payload offer ground commanders flexibility, persistent stare and persistent strike capabilities. Major Chesser, a Reaper pilot with the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance and Attack Squadron here, is deployed from Creech Air Force Base, Nev. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Don Branum)
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq -- Senior Master Sgt. Ralph Goodwater watches output from MQ-9 Reaper cockpit displays during a demonstration here Aug. 1. The Reaper is designed as a hunter-killer, capable of loitering over targets for long periods of time and delivering laser-guided ordnance such as GBU-12 bombs or Hellfire missiles. Sergeant Goodwater, a Reaper sensor operator with the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance and Attack Squadron here, is a reservist deployed from Creech Air Force Base, Nev. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Don Branum)
JOINT BASE BALAD, Iraq -- Airman 1st Class Jesse Morse operates the onboard sensor of an MQ-1 Predator unmanned aerial system as it prepares to take off from here Aug. 1. Airmen at Creech Air Force Base, Nev., control Predators during much of their missions, but pilots and sensor operators here operate the aircraft during takeoff and landing. Airman Morse, a Predator sensor operator with the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance and Attack Squadron here, is deployed from Creech AFB. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Don Branum)
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