Former prime minister Mackenzie King once said that ‘if some countries have too much history, we (Canada) have too much geography.’ When he said that, he might not even have been thinking of the huge areas encompassed by our three oceans, the Arctic and the Northwest Passage.

If you want to support Canadians through surveillance and monitoring of these areas where do you start? The RCAF relies on the CP 140 Aurora aircraft as its primary surveillance asset. The ongoing modernisation of the aircraft has reduced its availability and with a crew of 10 or more it is an expensive asset for the type of patrols required. Historically flights to the Arctic are infrequent at best and only a fraction of the required area can be covered.

As development increases in the North, the need will increase for more reliable and cost-effective surveillance and monitoring. For many, the solution appears to lie in drones.

In recent years, the term ‘drones’ has become synonymous with a very different form of warfare, a device used mainly for stealthy, targeted killings. It spawns legitimate questions regarding the use of such weaponry and, in some, a visceral response.

But that’s not what Canada needs in the Arctic. Instead, a high-altitude, long-endurance (HALE) aircraft loaded with sensors is what best suits Canada’s needs.

The U.S. military already has a UAV that would fit these criteria. It’s called Global Hawk. Global Hawk is the only High Altitude Long Endurance or HALE aircraft presently in production. There is no country more in need of such a capability than Canada.

Does it carry weapons? No. Could it? No. These are short answers to important questions, but important ones in the debate over militarizing the Arctic. All too often, rational discussion on the use of ‘drones’ to advantage gets sidelined by the general characterisation of all such vehicles as ‘killer drones’. In any discussion on ‘drones’ therefore you must be clear on exactly what missions and capabilities are being discussed.

Global Hawk flies at 60,000 feet for as much as 16,000 kilometers or more. As such it is a global surveillance asset for the US. These aircraft supported the Japanese government with surveillance of the devastated areas during the tsunami crisis of 2011. NASA flies Global Hawks to monitor and better understand the development and movement of hurricanes. For the aircraft to deploy and operate throughout the world it must overfly sovereign nations. Gaining permission for such overflights is dependent on their not being armed or even capable of being armed. The US government has clearly stated that Global Hawk will never be armed.

At high altitude, the game is situational awareness. If the situation is forest fires over a large area, GH provides responders exact information on boundaries and minute-to-minute movement of the fire. In natural disasters, pollution controls, tracking smugglers and poachers, and monitoring ship traffic in the Northwest Passage, the unmanned aerial vehicle is unmatched for versatility, range, and ability to stay on mission.

A single Global Hawk flight can depart from Goose Bay, Nfld, fly along the Atlantic approaches, cover the entire Northwest Passage, then the Pacific approaches and recover in Comox, B.C. with fuel to spare. With three Global Hawks an aircraft can maintain surveillance over the Northwest Passage 24 hours a day, seven days a week without interruption.

The key is flying at 60,000 feet. There are no commercial aircraft at that altitude. There are no strong winds at that altitude. Sensors such as Synthetic Aperture Radar, Electro-Optical and InfraRed cover a wider swath from that altitude. The radar is optimised for the maritime role and is assisted by the fitted Automatic Identification System for monitoring vessel traffic. For flights in southern Canada the key is flying at 60,000 feet. There is no possible interaction with the civil aviation system as the UAV simply flies far above. This allows it to respond immediately in support of first responders where early information can save lives.

The Government of Canada has clearly focused on the need to improve our presence in and over the Arctic. ‘Use it or lose it’ aptly describes the Prime Minister’s view of the future. Initiatives such as Arctic Offshore Patrol Vessels, and new icebreakers, will be important elements for our future posture. UAVs, suitably adapted for the Arctic environment would provide the fundamental domain awareness required to support a more robust response regime throughout the area.

The Arctic enjoys increasing levels of shipping activity in summer and overland visitors in winter. This brings forward issues such as illicit maritime activity, contravention of shipping customs and immigration regulations, illegal resource exploitation, environmental pollution and illegal entry of drugs and people. More vessels each year arrive in the Arctic unannounced and regular air patrols is the only way these can be effectively monitored. In the future we can look forward to a Northwest Passage that is fully open to navigation. For Canada to control maritime traffic in accordance with Canadian laws and regulations our ‘declaration’ of sovereignty over the area must be matched by our capability to monitor and control this traffic.

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Rear Admiral Bruce Johnston (Ret.) is a senior associate with Hill+Knowlton Strategies Canada. After a long and highly successful naval career, he has spent more than a decade in senior roles with some of the world’s largest aerospace and defence companies. Bruce graduated from the UBC and is currently deputy president of Naval Officers Association of Canada.

Hill+Knowlton Strategies Canada represents Northrop Grumman, the makers of the Global Hawk unmanned aerial surveillance vehicle.