The Air Force UAV COE, established at Creech AFB last March, will stand down in order to support the JUAV COE. The Air Force will retain its UAV Battlelab, which will continue to coordinate UAV activities at the tactical, operational, and strategic levels.

The JUAV COE is designed to improve interoperability and will examine the use of sensors and intelligence collection assets to meet the operational requirements of U.S. forces in any combat environment.

This will be an operationally focused organization concentrating on UAV systems technology, joint concepts, training, tactics, and procedural solutions to the warfighters� needs.

The Air Force UAV Battlelab will complement the JUAV COE - working to provide a common structure for UAV command and control systems, improve interoperability among the various systems and develop the common operating systems, standards, requirements, concept of operations, and training necessary to provide the joint warfighters the information they need.

Initial Operational Capability (IOC) for the JUAV COE is scheduled for October 1, 2005. A JUAV COE working group, to include a Joint Site Activation Task Force, will stand up in July to support the IOC date. The JUAV COE will determine resource and billet requirements and provide recommendations to the Joint Staff.

A U.S. Army brigadier general will initially lead the JUAV COE with a U.S. Air Force colonel as the deputy. These positions will rotate among the four military Services. Once established, the center will have representatives from all four military Services and other DOD and non-DOD agencies.

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