The Military Is Replacing Humans with Giant Drone Surge

The Military Is Replacing Humans with Giant Drone Surge

gizmodo.com

The Pentagon has to cut a lot of costs. Humans are expensive. Humans need to eat and sometimes they get sick. But drones? They can fly and kill for hours—so the military's ordering a ton to replace flesh.

The WSJ reports that as a result of the government being broke and spending too much on guns, the Army alone will drop over active duty 100,000 soldiers. But at the same time, we're ordering 30% more drones—enough to prowl the skies in a serious way:

(visit the link for the full news article)

the article goes on to say :

The Air Force now operates 61 drone combat air patrols around the clock, with up to four drones in each patrol. [Secretary of Defense] Panetta's plan calls for the military to have enough drones to comfortably operate 65 combat air patrols constantly with the ability to temporarily surge to 85 combat air patrols, officials said.

Skynet anyone?

We all knew this was bound to happen with rising costs of operations and the need to cut spending wherever possible. But will relying on drones be a safe cheap option or is this just an accident waiting to happen?

gizmodo.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

I knew this was coming, and I posted about this a few weeks ago.....robots/machines taking over many aspects of human life, including the military..

I welcome it; it is our evolution afterall.

you cannot occupy a country with drones. BUT you can remove the necessity of occupying a country with a Thermal Nuclear Bomb....Is this what they have in mind...Heaven Forbid!!!

Oh great. Just what we need.

More hackable tech, and more displaced Warriors.

We need to redefine "cost-effective".

reply to post by PhoenixOD


So this is when the machines " rise" The terminator was a documentary, dont become dependent on machines

Skynet is exactly what I was thinking. Another incident of life imitating art? Lets hope humans continue to control these drones, and we don't rely on artificial intelligence when it becomes available? It is something that should be considered since computing speeds and capabilities continue to improve rapidly.

Another thing to consider about this would be the relative ease for any leader to rely on using these machines to go to war. No longer will there be a stigma associated with warfare as we have known it in the past. No more flag draped coffins, and excessive expenditures of treasure and resources.

Oh yeah, we too must consider hackers and the possibility for them to gain control of these devices as well. We have learned that no computer network is a hundred percent safe. There have been quite a few breaches to some highly sensitive computer networks in the past, and what are they going to ensure that the networks associated with these machines are not compromised? Hate to have a war started as a result of computer hackers. The over-reliance on this technology in the business of warfare is a slippery slope, and fraught with moral and ethical dilemmas.

I once saw an episode of Twilight Zone (old sci fi tv show), where the drones developed their own minds, and started to decide who they should kill, which was ALL lawbreakers.

I wish this didn't keep reminding me of that show

Okay, has anyone been tracking how they're structuring moral decision making in military AI?

It's not great.

www.cc.gatech.edu...

news.discovery.com...

They're going for punishment/guilt rather than empathy.

The problem there being that empathy exerts a preventative influence, whereas guilt generally arises from an action already committed.

Eyes in the sky are great and all, but, where's the human intelligence and target confirmation?

Video feed from those things isn't exactly BBC HD Documentary quality. Mistakes are bound to occur, especially where operators are controlling 4 to 6 drones each.

I'm not surprised, drones follow orders no matter what!

Since were on the topic.

From STL Today:
"New drone has no pilot anywhere, so who's accountable?

interact.stltoday.com...

Remember Battlestar Galactic



Boeing X-45C in Hanger

DARPA To Support Development Of Human Brain-Machine Interfaces
www.sciencedaily.com...

IT HAS BEGUN

remember the Movie "Stealth" that featured "Tinman" the AI drone?



Well here is the real one...

Lockheed Martin Sabre Warrior UCAV Concept

Also has a seat for a pilot if needed...

Not surprising.

Drones don't have feelings. Drones carry out only the will of those who want to fight (yet allowing those same people to sit in a comfortable chair with a joystick and TV). Drones don't question why they fight. Drones don't tell their families stories of raping and killing while breaking down under PTSD.

Seems like the apex imperialist weapon.

TANARIS Great Britain

Read the book "wired for war."

It just makes more economic sens to use robots: Robots don't have to get paid, don't need food, don't need medical, salary etc..

I guess if you really loved the USA, you can fight to defend it for free.

reply to post by zorgon


Z,,, I think you can relate to my opinion, the drones you are showing are pilot-less because they fly beyond the means of human ability...they are not just trying to cut a human out of a job and leave heart, bravery and decision out of the picture. These things are 100% USDOD Prime Flying Black Ops Reverse Engineering from another Realm. Damn, dont they look sexy?

Originally posted by THE_PROFESSIONAL
Read the book "wired for war."

It just makes more economic sens to use robots: Robots don't have to get paid, don't need food, don't need medical, salary etc..

I guess if you really loved the USA, you can fight to defend it for free.

there's no need for a consumer either...yeah think about that one for a minute

reply to post by PhoenixOD


Watch when they replace the entire airforce with drones and then fighter pilots come and shoot the drones down like the Russian Mig shot down the Georgian drone..

Originally posted by rebellender
Damn, dont they look sexy?

I'm afraid that I find nothing sexy about drones. It's like a girl saying that she doesn't need you anymore because she finds her dildo to be more efficient.

Pilots will always find a truer purpose in the skies than pilotless killing machines.



Su-34. Now that is a sexy piece of hardware

THE_PROFESSIONAL-
Watch when they replace the entire airforce with drones and then fighter pilots come and shoot the drones down like the Russian Mig shot down the Georgian drone..

Drones require some kind of transmission signal to operate, while fighters obviously only require a pilot. Drones becomes worthless when there is no transmission signal between them and the operator, a problem easily exploited.