Former military intelligence chief advising Trump joins Drone Aviation

COMSovereign Holding

04/05/2016 11:00

By Idrees Ali 
    WASHINGTON, May 4 (Reuters) - Retired Lieutenant General 
Michael Flynn, who has been advising Donald Trump informally on 
foreign policy, will join Drone Aviation Holding Corp  DRNE.PK  
as vice chairman of its board of directors, the company said in 
a statement on Wednesday. 
    Flynn, who was chief of the Defense Intelligence Agency 
under President Barack Obama from 2012-2014 and has since been 
advising Trump, the Republican presidential front-runner, wants 
the United States to work more closely with Russia to resolve 
global security issues.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N1652GV 
    "Having evaluated the (company's) technologies, I believe 
they can positively impact our military's defense and 
situational awareness and that is why I am joining Jay and his 
team in expanding the role of persistent aerial solutions in the 
marketplace," Flynn said in the statement, referring to company 
CEO Jay Nussbaum.  
    Drone Aviation develops and manufactures aerostats and 
electric-powered drones to give its customers "enhanced 
surveillance and communication capabilities." 
    The company's customers include the U.S. military, Saudi 
Arabia and the Ecuadorian Air Force, according to its website. 
    Flynn resigned as the head of the Pentagon's main 
intelligence agency a year before his term was officially due to 
end. 
    He raised eyebrows among some U.S. foreign policy veterans 
when he was pictured sitting at the head table with Russian 
President Vladimir Putin at a banquet in Moscow late last year 
celebrating Russia Today, an international broadcasting network 
funded by the Russian government. 
    He told Russia Today in an interview published on Dec. 10 
that the United States and Russia should work together to 
resolve the Syrian civil war and defeat the Islamic State 
militant group. 
    Flynn's experience would "help ensure that our tethered 
solutions, today and in the future, will continue to meet the 
needs of our soldiers and security forces at home and abroad as 
they respond to evolving threats," Nussbaum said in the same 
statement. 
 
 (Reporting by Idrees Ali; Editing by Paul Tait) 
 ((Idrees.Ali@thomsonreuters.com; 301-747-8263;)) 
 
Keywords: USA DRONE AVIATION/VICE CHAIRMAN