Former military intelligence chief advising Trump joins Drone Aviation

[May 04, 2016]  By Idrees Ali
 
 WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, who has been advising Donald Trump informally on foreign policy, will join Drone Aviation Holding Corp 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.

"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)

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