WASHINGTON — The Pentagon plans to dramatically increase the surveillance capabilities of its most advanced unmanned aircraft next year, adding so many video feeds that a drone which now stares down at a single house or vehicle could keep constant watch on nearly everything that moves within an area of 1.5 square miles.
The year after that, the capability will double to 3 square miles.
Military officials predict that the impact on counter-terrorism operations in Afghanistan will be impressive.
"Predators and other unmanned aircraft have just revolutionized our ability to provide a constant stare against our enemy," said a senior military official. "The next sensors, mark my words, are going to be equally revolutionary."
Unmanned MQ-9 Reaper aircraft now produce a single video feed as they fly continuously over surveillance routes, and the area they can cover largely depends on altitude. The new technology initially will increase the number of video feeds to 12 and eventually to 65.
Like the Reaper and its earlier counterpart, the Predator, the newest technology program has been given a fearsome name: the Gorgon Stare, named for the mythological creature whose gaze turns victims to stone.
Unmanned aircraft, used both for surveillance and for offensive strikes, are considered the most significant advance in military technology in a generation.
They not only have altered the conduct of warfare, but have also changed the nature of the current policy debate in Washington.
The improvements have bolstered the arguments of those in the Obama administration who oppose sending additional troops to Afghanistan. Unmanned aircraft also play a large role in the compromise plans being discussed by the administration.
The White House is considering stepping up the use of Reapers and Predators in rural Afghanistan as a way to disrupt the Taliban and militant groups without having to put thousands of additional troops in sparsely populated areas.
"The technology allows us to project power without vulnerability," said a senior Defense official. "You don't have to deploy as many people. And in the modern age you want as little stuff forward as long as you can achieve the effects as if you had lots of people forward."
But some officials caution that policymakers should not rely too heavily on the unmanned drones.
