Mar. 29 - One of my favourite tools in our arsenal is a Predator armed with a Hellfire missile. It has the elegance of hitting them when they least expect it, and the tactical advantage of making them feel (rightly) vulnerable - by the time you see it, it's too late.
I am pleased that there are plans to increase the fleet which Murdoc has covered here and he also provides the link to a video of a Predator firing a hellfire missile.
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If you're interested in drone aircraft, I encourage you to look up the X-45 and X-47 UCAV prototypes, currently under testing. I got a chance to check out the first X-45 prototype once during my Boeing days - it was a little thing, landed updside-down, but it and its follow-ons will probably change air combat forever.
www.darpa.mil/ucav/ should be an okay place to start.
Posted by: SparcVark at March 29, 2005 05:45 PM (X7hb0)
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"Our Arsenal"?
Do you personally own it, or is this just stupid nationalism rearing its ugly head?
Posted by: Blackglasses at March 29, 2005 07:29 PM (t+KkC)
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Geez, that's not even quality trolling. Put at least a tiny amount of effort into it.
Posted by: Jay at March 29, 2005 09:28 PM (PuNh2)
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I'm so sorry.
Would you like me to talk about how you all jerk off to Tom Clancy novels?
Yes?
Posted by: Blackglasses at March 29, 2005 10:42 PM (t+KkC)
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So, I'm curious. Why exactly *do* you bother with comments, Debbye?
Posted by: SparcVark at March 30, 2005 10:31 AM (X7hb0)
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SparcVark - I don't know!
(I'm not sure if it was a serious or rhetorical question but I'll try to answer. Ignore and move alone if it was rhetorical.)
In no particular order: because it keeps me honest, I gain new insights, I pick up links and new blogs, and probably I think there's a lot of people who see that the world is going through momentous changes and they want to be part of trying to make some sense of it.
It's also a bit of a free speech issue. I could ban some of them, but shutting someone down rarely shuts them up. (I do step in when someone makes racist or homophobic remarks, though.)
BTW, the link you posted above on more info about the prototypes for the Predator doesn't work. I'll try later in case the site is temporarily down (due, no doubt, to the vast numbers of people trying to log onto it from here ...)
Posted by: Debbye at March 30, 2005 12:14 PM (a3FvC)
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Link just worked for me.
Posted by: Jay at March 30, 2005 12:55 PM (PuNh2)
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Well, the Boeing X-45 page is at
http://www.boeing.com/defense-space/military/x-45/flash.html
for the interested.
The X-45 and x-47 aren't Predator prototypes strictly speaking. The Predator was a reconnaissance drone that was retrofitted to carry a missile, whereas the new UCAV models are purpose-built attack aircraft. No unmanned fighters have been built as of yet, but I'd expect them once people start seeing the bills for the F-22 program.
Posted by: SparcVark at March 30, 2005 02:35 PM (X7hb0)
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The link worked for me- i can confirm this, because like the rest of you war porners, i just had some "alone time" with a picture of the X-45 and x-47.
Yessssssssssss.
Posted by: Blackglasses at March 30, 2005 10:13 PM (t+KkC)
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Blackglasses, you're done here.
Posted by: Debbye at April 01, 2005 08:18 AM (I0F6J)
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