• We have updated the guidelines regarding posting political content: please see the stickied thread on Website Issues.

Drone Strikes

uair01

Antediluvian
Joined
Apr 12, 2005
Messages
5,413
Location
The Netherlands
I dont think a comparison to V1s or V2s is the same at all, they just dropped where they felt like it, not saying the people in the drones fireline would feel good about that drones ability to be very targeted in its delivery in any way...i dont condone war at any level..

but the drones are controlled by a human, so in many respects they are no different than a conventional manned aircraft with a chap with a finger on the button.

as to them being used by police, government agencies i can see there may be issues relating to what they can see and why....that will no doubt be one to discuss over time...but our freedom of speech, our ability to not be seen is dwindling all the time, we may just have to accept these as the ways things are now.

from a greater good aspect.. they are cheaper, they dont have a crew to get shot down...they use less fuel...they dont get shot down that easily...less cost...they are greener !!!

like i said, war is horrible and should never happen, espcially where we shouldnt be butting our noses in anyway....
 
Now drones are to be used by the police to gather intelligence if they get their way.

California Eyeing Drone Surveillance
http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/1 ... ia-drones/
BY DAVID KRAVETS12.04.123:43 PM


Aeryon Labs has submitted a bid to Alameda County to purchase this 3-pound “Scout” surveillance drone

Plans by the first California local government to deploy a surveillance drone were postponed Tuesday amid protests by rights groups who complained that Alameda County authorities were rushing the plan without public input.

“There has to be robust public engagement whether to deploy something like this,” said Will Matthews, a spokesman for the American Civil Liberties Union.

Alameda County is moving to become one of dozens of local law enforcement agencies nationwide to deploy the unmanned crafts. Some of the agencies include the Seattle Police Department, Miami-Dade Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The move comes three months after the Government Accountability Office warned Congress that its push for drones to become commonplace in U.S. airspace fails to take into account privacy, security and even GPS jamming and spoofing. The GAO, Congress’ research arm, was responding to the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, signed by President Barack Obama in February, which among other things requires the Federal Aviation Administration to accelerate drone flights in U.S. airspace.

Alameda County, in the Bay Area, is home to Oakland, the scene of violent Occupy protests last year.

Whether Alameda County Sheriff Greg Ahern has been completely upfront with his proposal to accept drone funding from the Department of Homeland Security is up for debate. Funding for a drone of 3 or 4 pounds was included in a Board of Supervisors agenda item listing more than $1 million in grants in all for a variety of other policing programs, from bomb detection to general training.

In a letter to the board, the sheriff is requesting that it accept $31,000 in grant money that would partly fund an unmanned aircraft, which the county has received bids ranging from $50,000 to $107,500.

“This system will provide real-time situational analysis for first responders to include search and rescue missions, tactical operations, disaster response, recovery and damage assessment, explosive ordnance response, wild land and structure fire response and response to Hazmat incidents,” (.pdf) he wrote.

But documents before the California Emergency Management Agency, which is distributing the federal drone funding, show that the sheriff’s “objectives” for the drone is “intelligence and information sharing and dissemination, planning.” (.pdf)

The records were obtained by the ACLU and the Electronic Frontier Foundation via open-records laws, and provided to Wired.

Weeks ago, the sheriff told a local NBC affiliate that it was a “no-brainer” when it came to deploying a drone.

No model of drone has been chosen. But the records show that the agency has received several bids.

Among them, they include:

Lockheed Martin, QR425 Quadrotor System, (.pdf) $50,000
Aeryon Labs, Aeryon Scout Pro System, $107,500, (.pdf) and Aeryon Scout Civilian System, $67,500 (Infrared and video zoom costs extra.)
ING Engineering, VTOL Scout System, (.pdf) $90,000
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors sent the Sheriff’s funding request to its Public Protection Committee, which is tentatively slated to have a public hearing on the matter as early as next month.
 
Whilst London borough of Lambeth is using phone `lie detector` tests to terrorise the poor off benefits. PrivateEye thoroughly debunked the Israeli company that makes them & so did Radio 4`s Face the Facts. Maybe they should just merge the war on terror and the war on drugs and rebrand as the war on us, who aren`t rich and powerful?
 
RC hobby websites will sell actual models of a Predator drone. If you want to scare the neighbours.
 
Mini helicopter drone for UK troops in Afghanistan
British soldiers in Afghanistan have become the first to use miniature surveillance helicopters in frontline operations.

The drones can fly around corners and obstacles to identify potential hidden dangers, the Ministry of Defence said.

The Norwegian-designed Black Hornet Nano features a tiny camera and relays video and still images to a handheld control terminal.

It measures about 10cm by 2.5cm (4in by 1in) and weighs 16g (0.6oz).

The MoD, which also operates more than 300 larger-sized unmanned air vehicles in Afghanistan, said the Black Hornet is carried easily on patrol and works in harsh environments and windy conditions.

They have been in use in Afghanistan since 2012, a spokeswoman confirmed.

Surrey-based Marlborough Communications has a £20m contract with the military to supply and maintain 160 of the drones, which were originally developed by Prox Dynamics for search and rescue operations.

Mini drones can be piloted directly or programmed to follow co-ordinates using GPS.

Powered by battery, the Black Hornet is reported to have a range of about half a mile (800m), a top speed of 22mph (35kph) and can fly for up to 30 minutes.


If the press are allowed to announce this, it makes you think that the rumours of "insect sized" drones, like the fly that Obama caught on TV might be true.
 
The Missile from Hell, viable but cancelled in 1964.

Project Pluto or SLAM, the Supersonic Low Altitude Missile was designed to deliver twenty-six nuclear bombs over Russia, while its own propulsion system spewed out radiation over the countryside.

"The heart of the Project Pluto missile was the nuclear-fueled ramjet. An unshielded nuclear reactor, code named TORY, was devised, built and successfully tested."

Jokes about Laying Waste the Country Start Here!

:_omg:
 
Wow, that's a completely evil weapon. :shock:
 
Controversial military drones to fly over Cornwall?
1:10pm Tuesday 10th September 2013 in News .

Controversial military drones could soon fly over Cornwall after an announcement that the world’s first private facility for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) has been created through a partnership between West Wales Airport and Newquay Cornwall Airport.

Launched in London, the National Aeronautical Centre (NAC) will enable the development, testing, evaluation, training and demonstration of drones.
The centre is open to civilian and military contractors and will deliver services and accommodation for all sizes of drones in production and development over the next 20 years, with the NAC website saying that with "one of the longest fully instrumented runways in the UK at 3,000 metres and access to 8,000 sq km of segregated airspace Newquay can play host to the largest of unmanned systems".

Adding that with the Aerohub being England's only aerospace focused Enterprise Zone Newquay offers aviation and aerospace companies a "unique operating environment".
Backed by Cornwall and Scily Isles Development Agency, it supplies a wide range of services including ground accommodation and project financing.

Drones are controversial, both from a public privacy stand point and for their role in the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians, including children, in Pakistan and other countries.

Ray Mann, Head of the NAC, said: “The launch of the NAC is a further step towards developing a UK based UAS capability that can operate in a competitive global market place. Confidence surrounding UAS continues to grow and we can’t afford to be left behind.”

“This is an opportunity for the UK to lead the way – Together, West Wales Airport and Newquay Cornwall Airport are committed to being at the forefront of developments in this sector and we hope our vision will deliver rewards. We need to ensure that some current perceptions of civilian use of UAS don’t hinder the UK’s ability to capitalise on this exciting opportunity for economic growth.”

Al Titterington, Managing Director of Newquay Cornwall Airport said: “The global aerospace market is forecast to be worth four trillion dollars (US) by 2030, yet the UK is currently forecast to see just 10% of this investment. The UK aerospace industry has a major opportunity in the UAS market but first it must develop, demonstrate and prove that systems and sub-systems can contribute to ensuring safe and reliable operations, whilst being properly regulated.”
“The creation of the NAC has given the UK a world unique, national asset, where the development of new aerospace technologies, in the form of UAS, is now being undertaken. We are excited about announcing this launch in partnership with West Wales Airport.”

Richard Deakin, Chief Executive Officer of NATS, said: “NATS has been controlling UAS’ for 40 years. We hold some of the world’s most respected experts in unmanned flight management and have been instrumental in developing and validating the procedures for unmanned flights in UK airspace.
“The NAC is a fundamental facility for growth in this industry and NATS is delighted to be involved in this launch as well as in future projects and commercial opportunities.”

The value of the UAS market has been forecast to be £30 billion per year by 2020 in the military sector alone.

http://www.falmouthpacket.co.uk/news/10 ... l_/?ref=mr
 
Empty F-16 jet tested by Boeing and US Air Force
By Leo Kelion, Technology reporter

Boeing has revealed that it has retrofitted retired fighter jets to turn them into drones.
It said that one of the Lockheed Martin F-16 made a first flight with an empty cockpit last week.
Two US Air Force pilots controlled the plane from the ground as it flew from a Florida base to the Gulf of Mexico.
Boeing suggested that the innovation could ultimately be used to help train pilots, providing an adversary they could practise firing on.

The jet - which had previously sat mothballed at an Arizona site for 15 years - flew at an altitude of 40,000ft (12.2km) and a speed of Mach 1.47 (1,119mph/1,800km/h).
It carried out a series of manoeuvres including a barrel roll and a "split S" - a move in which the aircraft turns upside down before making a half loop so that it flies the right-way-up in the opposite direction. This can be used in combat to evade missile lock-ons.

Boeing said the unmanned F16 was followed by two chase planes to ensure it stayed in sight, and also contained equipment that would have allowed it to self-destruct if necessary.
The firm added that the flight attained 7Gs of acceleration but was capable of carrying out manoeuvres at 9Gs - something that might cause physical problems for a pilot.
"It flew great, everything worked great, [it] made a beautiful landing - probably one of the best landings I've ever seen," said Paul Cejas, the project's chief engineer.

Lt Col Ryan Inman, Commander of the US Air Force's 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron, also had praise for how the test had gone.
"It was a little different to see it without anyone in it, but it was a great flight all the way around," he said.

Boeing said that it had a total of six modified F-16s, which have been renamed QF-16s, and that the US military now planned to use some of them in live fire tests.

However, a spokesman for the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots warned of the temptation to use them in warfare.
"I'm very concerned these could be used to target people on the ground," said Prof Noel Sharkey.
"I'm particularly worried about the high speed at which they can travel because they might not be able to distinguish their targets very clearly.
"There is every reason to believe that these so-called 'targets' could become a test bed for drone warfare, moving us closer and closer to automated killing."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24231077
 
(feel free to move to a better thread)

full story here :
http://rt.com/news/killer-robot-drone-uk-735/

Killer robot flight: Video of UK’s autonomous drone released
Published time: February 05, 2014 16:07
Edited time: February 05, 2014 17:42

The UK’s BAE Systems have unveiled footage of the unmanned combat drone, Taranis, on its maiden flight. While it hails the drone - capable of self-selecting targets - as “inspiration for nation,” activists are urging to ban the use of its auto-kill mode.

Defense companies are keen for their new arms and hardware to look appealing to the public, as attested by a series of clips uploaded to BAE Systems’ YouTube channel on Wednesday.
 
Anti-drone activist kidnapped in Pakistan before he was due to testify in Europe
Published time: February 11, 2014 04:05 Edited time: February 11, 2014 06:27
http://rt.com/news/anti-drone-pakistan- ... ssing-476/

An MQ-1B Predator.(Reuters / U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Julianne Showalter)

A prominent Pakistani journalist and anti-drone activist has gone missing after nearly two dozen men stormed his home and abducted him, his lawyer announced on Monday – just days before he was due to testify before European parliamentarians.

Kareem Khan was taken from his home in Rawalpindi – a city located just nine miles away from Islamabad in Punjab province – by approximately 20 men. Shahzad Akbar, Khan’s lawyer, told AFP that many of the men were wearing police uniforms, though the affiliation of the kidnappers remains unknown.

Khan was scheduled to depart Pakistan on Saturday to speak with German, Dutch, and British parliamentarians about his experience with drone strikes.

Khan originally hails from the tribal region of North Waziristan and became the first Pakistani man to sue the US government in connection with drone attacks that killed members of his family. Khan’s brother and son were killed in a strike in December 2009.

Akbar now maintains that Khan’s wife and children have not been given any information regarding his location, or why he was taken.

“We lodged a report with the local police but they denied having picked him up,” the attorney said. “It seems to be work of the intelligence agencies.”

Local police have denied any involvement, saying they have no record of a raid on the night in question.

Clare Algar, executive director at Reprieve – a legal charity based in the UK – wrote on the organization’s website that officials are growing concerned.

“We are very worried about Mr. Khan’s safety,” she wrote. “He is a crucial witness to the dangers of the CIA’s covert drone program, and has simply sought justice for the death of his son and brother through peaceful, legal routes. Reports that he was detained by men in police uniforms are of great concern, and we urge the Government of Pakistan to do everything in its power to secure his immediate release.”

He first filed suit in 2010, asserting that drone strikes murder innocent civilians and violate international law by subverting the international prohibition on assassinations away from a battlefield. Khan said he was not home at the time of the strike, but stated that neighbors witnessed a massive blast.

In addition to Khan’s brother and son, a construction worker also died in the strike. Khan’s brother was a teacher with a master’s degree in English, while his son was a staff member at a government school.

Senior US intelligence officials told CNN at the time that Khan was suspected of housing Haji Omar Khan, a notorious Taliban leader who was also killed in the strike. Khan has denied ever knowing Haji Omar Khan, who fought against the Soviet Red Army in Afghanistan before developing close ties with Mullah Omar.

Last year, Akbar – who represents a number of Pakistanis affected by drone strikes – and other activists published a letter in which they named the CIA station chief in Islamabad, accusing he and CIA director John Brennan of murder for their role in a drone strike late last year.

While exact figures are murky, AFP estimates that 2,155 Pakistanis have been killed in drone attacks since august 2008. It remains unknown how many of those killed were suspected militants and how many were civilians.
 
Pakistan anti-drone activist Kareem Khan reappears
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-26198207

In this photograph taken on June 6, 2013, Pakistani tribesman Kareem Khan (R), speaks to media during a press conference in Islamabad.

Kareem Khan had not been heard from since 5 February

A Pakistani anti-drone campaigner who was abducted from his home in February, days before he was due to testify before European MPs, has reappeared.

Kareem Khan's lawyer says he was kidnapped, tortured and interrogated before being dumped near Islamabad.

The men who seized him wore police uniforms, the lawyer said.

On Wednesday, a Pakistani court ordered the government to produce him by 20 February or provide the reason for his detention.

The campaigner's brother and son were killed in a drone attack five years ago.

The United States uses unmanned drones to carry out strikes on Taliban and al-Qaeda targets in Pakistan's border region with Afghanistan.

Their use causes fierce controversy in Pakistan.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has called for an end to drone attacks in Pakistan, saying they violate Pakistan's sovereignty.

However, the government is widely thought to co-operate in at least some of the strikes.
 
Drones can be used for good, as in this example of SAR (well, S!)

Drone finds missing US man in 20 minutes

A model drone has helped locate an elderly man in Wisconsin who had been missing for three days.
Search teams using dogs, helicopters and volunteers had combed the countryside around Fitchburg seeking Guillermo DeVenecia.
The drone found Mr DeVenecia, who has Alzheimer's, about 20 minutes after its operator joined the search effort. 8)
The success may put pressure on US rules limiting the use of drones in search and rescue operations.

Mr DeVenecia was spotted stumbling around in a bean field by a drone flown by David Lesh who usually uses the craft to make videos for his skiing and snowboarding business in Colorado. Mr Lesh was in Fitchburg to visit his girlfriend's family.

When he heard about the community-wide effort to locate the 82-year-old he decided to join in and used the drone to scout areas the missing man may have wandered into.
"I never thought that I would be using it to find somebody," Mr Lesh told NBC.

A medical check revealed Mr DeVenecia was only mildly dehydrated after his three-day sojourn and thought he had only been out for a short walk.

The case comes after the Federal Aviation Administration lost a court case brought by Texan firm EquuSearch which had been using small drones in its rescue operations.
EquuSearch was banned from using drones in February by the FAA citing rules dating from 2007 that barred commercial use of unmanned aircraft.
The court decision had no impact on the FAA's authority to regulate the use of drones, the agency told tech news site Ars Technica.

However, in March a US court found that the FAA rules banning commercial use of drones were put into force illegally because it had not done enough to solicit comment from the public. The FAA has appealed against that decision.
In addition, the FAA has said it will take another look at its rules governing drones and aim to put new rules in place by the end of 2015.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-28423252
 
Royal Navy launches first 'drone' unit

The Royal Navy's first squadron of unmanned aircraft, commonly known as drones, has been formed in Cornwall.
The 700X Naval Air Squadron has been established at RNAS Culdrose, Helston, to fly the pilotless aircraft.
The Royal Navy said the establishment of the new squadron would pave the way for increased use of similar aircraft in the future.

The pilotless ScanEagle aircraft can stay in the air for 18 hours and beam video into a ship's operation room.
Lt Cdr Al Rogers, commanding officer of 700X Naval Air Squadron said: "This is a fantastic job. It's the Fleet Air Arm's first step into the world of remotely piloted air systems and we are looking to develop our tactics and embrace this new technology ensuring the Royal Navy remains a world leader in aviation at sea - whether manned or unmanned."

The aircraft is launched by a catapult on a 14ft (4.27m) ramp.
Since being introduced to ships deployed east of Suez at the beginning of 2014, ScanEagle has clocked up nearly 1,500 hours on missions.

It was brought in to provide eyes for the Royal Navy's minehunting force in the Gulf, but has been used in counter-piracy and counter-smuggling operations thanks to its ability to monitor boarding operation or suspicious vessels.

The new squadron will act as parent unit for the flights deployed on Royal Navy vessels and will try out any future unmanned aircraft which the Fleet Air Arm decides to invest in.
The 700X Naval Air Squadron will be one of the smallest units in the Royal Navy with 12 personnel but that number could double by the end of 2015.

The Boeing Insitu ScanEagle is currently being flown from HMS Kent, which has just arrived in the Arabian Sea to begin counter-piracy patrols.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cornwall-30226677

Photos on page show the ScanEagle on RFA Cardigan. It's small enough to be carried on the shoulder of one man. It's launched by catapult, and recovered by a 'retrieving frame'.
 
Browsing some images on fotoLibra I came across a pic of a pilotless meteor target drone, from 1984. I'd not heard of this before.

http://www.fotolibra.com/gallery/412503 ... get-drone/
(You'll need to register to view images.)

Wiki says:


Obsolete jet and propeller-powered aircraft (such as the Fairey Firefly, Gloster Meteor and de Havilland Sea Vixen used at RAE Llanbedr between the 1950s and 1990s) have also been modified into remote controlled drones, but such modifications are costly.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Target_drone

(The photo was taken at Llanbedr.)

More info:

http://britishjets.net/wps/jetpages.nsf ... meteor_u16
 
It's a Hollywood sci-fi fantasy that has long eluded the Pentagon: a flying "mothership" that launches smaller aircraft.

The Pentagon's research agency put out a request to industry this month to outline how a large cargo plane could release drones to spy on or attack an enemy and then return to the flying aircraft carrier.

The concept conjures up fantastical images from "The Avengers" film and the "StarCraft" video game, with large, lumbering motherships sending out smaller craft—but there are no cloaking devices involved in this particular project.

At the moment, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is not close to constructing any test planes and is merely exploring the possibility on paper, officials and experts said.

"This is the float-the-idea stage of the concept. It's not the build-me-a-prototype stage. We're not to that yet," said author Peter Singer, who has written extensively about robots and warfare.

In a conceptual drawing from DARPA, a cargo plane resembling a C-130 releases a squadron of drones that look similar to Predator or Reaper aircraft. ...

http://phys.org/news/2014-11-military-elusive-mothership.html
 
Back
Top