EFFECTIVE GROUP APPROACHES TO ACCOMPLISH MAJOR IMAGE INTERPRETER MISSIONS 
The fifth research subtask, unlike the others which are concerned 
with individual abilities and techniques, deals with effective group 
approaches to photointerpreter missions. Here interest is focussed on 
the photointerpreter unit and its performance. The first project is a 
study of what typical photointerpreter missions are likely to be, and 
of how the effectiveness of typical PI missions is evaluated. In the 
second project the conventional approaches to accomplishment of typical 
missions will be studied with & view to determining whether improved 
approaches can be devised. These studies will provide information on 
the size of photointerpreter units, the combination of skills and the 
skill levels required to accomplish the missions, and, most important, 
the standard operating procedures and sequences of unit operations in- 
involved in accomplishing the missions. 
IMAGE INTERPRETATION AS A PART OF THE AERIAL SURVEILLANCE INTELLIGENCE SYSTEM 
The relationship between this research, which is largely concerned 
with the image interpreter subsystem, and the entire aerial surveillance 
system is shown in Figure 1. The system cycle starts with the projec- 
tion of the requirements by the commanding officer and continues with 
the planning of the flight, the type of coverage specific to the com- 
mender's requirement, decisions as to the type of platform and sensor 
to be employed, processing of the images into hard copy, storage, re- 
trieval and annotation problems within the administrative phase, the 
image interpretation, the assimilation of information by the G2 Air 
Officers, and ends with the revised intelligence estimate. Each of 
these other subsystems impinges upon the performance of the irage in- 
terpreter. For his part, the image interpreter is indirectly involved 
in planning and decision-making in each of the other subsystems. For 
example, in determining the need for air reconnaissance to answer a 
military requirement, the image interpreter is in the best position to 
Know the existence of a "holiday" or gap in coverage because he knows 
the limitations and capabilities of each type of sensor. Therefore, he 
is likely to have a strong influence in determining what kinds of sensors 
will be employed and also what kinds of platforms will be employed, since 
the attitude of the aerial platform, the altitude of the flight, and 
weather conditions all have a bearing on photo characteristics. If the 
military commander is aware of what it costs to obtain answers to an 
intelligence problem in terms of time required for directed search as 
against free search, he can frame the intelligence requirement so as to 
reduce the effort required without reducing the quality of information 
extracted. In this portion of the research task, efforts are directed 
to problems within the image interpreter subsystem. 
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