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In the years since the 9-11 attacks, unmanned aircraft — “drones” — have become the signature combat system of America’s global war against terrorists. According to the Air Force, its fleet of Predator and Reaper unmanned aircraft flew an average of 1000 hours per day last year over places like Iraq and Afghanistan, generating full-motion video and other reconnaissance that has become crucial to coalition military operations. The joint force routinely uses Reaper, a hunter-killer drone, to take out terrorists and insurgents where they hide because of its ability to loiter for many hours above suspected sanctuaries until enemies show themselves.
Such exploits have spawned widespread speculation that one day unmanned systems will dominate warfighting, taking the place of traditional combat systems not just in the air but on the ground and beneath the sea. For instance, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus recently told an audience that “unmanned systems, particularly autonomous ones, have to be the new normal in ever-increasing areas.” Mabus believes the F-35C fighter his service is developing will be the last manned fighter to fly off carrier decks.
Concerning drones, EVP and General Manager Rob Weiss says, “the Skunk Works is focused on persistent and survivable systems with enhanced sensor performance, and lower manpower requirements.” He goes on to state somewhat cryptically that his team has “proven” it can build such systems. Weiss says that legacy unmanned systems such as Reaper and Global Hawk “are designed to operate in the current permissive airspace environments and they will have limited utility in the future.” So Lockheed Martin is working on systems that will be able to operate effectively in what the Pentagon calls anti-access/area-denial environments — such as the airspace around Russia and China.
That implies drone designs incorporating low-observable (stealth) features, low-probability-of-intercept communication links, and advanced software capable of executing complex missions in the absence of continuous control by remote human pilots. But while the drones would have greater autonomy thanks to sophisticated algorithms in their flight controls and mission systems, they could also be integrated more readily with the operations of manned aircraft such as the F-35 fighter. That would be a big departure from today’s practices, where drones are electronically tethered to pilots on the ground and operate in isolation from manned aircraft. Working in tandem with manned aircraft presumably would require drones to have similar performance features.
There’s a lot more to the concept than that, though. For instance, drones would be able to “learn” from each other by sharing information after missions, using machine-learning technology not resident in today’s drone fleet. They would have reduced manpower requirements, reduced bandwidth requirements, and performance reliability comparable to that of manned aircraft. In other words, attrition due to crashes would be largely a thing of the past. And rather than performing one or two roles, the next-generation drones would be multi-role airframes capable of conducting diverse reconnaissance, strike, jamming and cyber missions all at the same time.
originally posted by: Asktheanimals
The thing about drones is they don't require the sacrifice of any soldiers or even the political approval of the country they operate for. In fact, this places them within the reach of corporations because all you need is money. What's to stop the Blackwater (Xe) from buying their own fleet? Or Monsanto for that matter?
Lovely that our government already gave approval for 30,000 of these robotic killers to loiter in our skies.
Who is going to count them?
Why do they need them HERE?
Why is Jade Helm happening HERE?
Are you all getting the drift?
Assigned to spy on Iraq in 2002, the new UAV was never officially acknowledged. But it was seen.
The pilots of high-flying U-2 spy planes, based in the United Arab Emirates for reconnaissance flights over Iraq, complained of nearly colliding with unidentified but obviously U.S.-origin drones flying along similar paths as the venerable U-2s.
Challenge
The inability of an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to perform emergency landings in unknown areas is a significant issue for UAV operators as it can often result in the loss of the vehicle. BAE Systems Australia has developed a ground-breaking solution.
Process
Our Intelligent Landing System enables UAVs to land themselves.
The cutting-edge technology allows UAVs to autonomously locate a suitable landing strip and land safely without relying on GPS, remote piloting, special equipment on the ground, surveying of the landing site, and other external systems.
When a landing strip is visible, the system uses visual or image-based clues and develops specific algorithms to land safely. The system is so clever that it can also calculate algorithms for moving platforms such as naval ships.
Its features means plans for normal UAV missions can be quickly developed and implemented to incorporate multiple alternate landing strips. These plans can be changed at any time during the mission.
The landing solution also brings a UAV in on a normal circuit approach, which means it can share airstrips with other air traffic.
Result
The Intelligent Landing System has set a new benchmark in autonomy for UAVs and offers customers significant operational and safety benefits.
This technology means UAVs can safely land in emergency situations without assistance – an innovation that not only protects the UAV and offers increased reliability, but has the potential to save lives.
The Intelligent Landing System also offers important benefits for normal UAV missions. It enables more efficient mission planning, reduces supporting infrastructure, decreases operator workload and means UAVs can share airstrips.
It can even be used for manned civil and military aircraft.
The Intelligent Landing System is currently installed on BAE Systems Australia’s Kingfisher 2 UAV system and significant elements are embedded in the global Company’s next generation of UAVs.
The technology was awarded the inaugural National Defence Industry Innovation Award at the 2013 Australian International Airshow.
originally posted by: Zaphod58
Assigned to spy on Iraq in 2002, the new UAV was never officially acknowledged. But it was seen.
The pilots of high-flying U-2 spy planes, based in the United Arab Emirates for reconnaissance flights over Iraq, complained of nearly colliding with unidentified but obviously U.S.-origin drones flying along similar paths as the venerable U-2s.
medium.com...