Customs and Border Protection announced the acquisition of yet another Predator drone to its growing fleet. Most notable for killing enemy targets (and civilians) in sovereign nations the U.S. isn’t officially at war with, this latest addition gives the federal agency a total of nine unmanned aircraft to patrol the border and keep would-be cow poachers in check.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is at war with whalers and drones have become an important part of its ongoing reconnaissance operations against them, but unlike the ones deployed by the U.S. military and the CIA, theirs aren’t used to kill life, they’re used to preserve it. Read more »
With drones currently operating in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Libya, among other places, U.S. officials decided to open up a new front over yet another predominantly Muslim country: Yemen! Since the CIA has carte blanche to operate the pilotless aircraft and basically use the entire planet as its theater of war, they’ll be assisting the military in hunting down al Qaeda or at least the people that look like them.
Last month, the British Ministry of Defense warned that the prolific use of drones in battle will lead toward an “incremental and involuntary journey towards a Terminator-like reality.” Today, we learn that the Pentagon plans on doubling its robotic fleet of pilotless aircraft over the next three decades, essentially guaranteeing the fall of man and rise of the Resistance. Fun times.
The U.S. Air Force is looking to develop a mini-drone that’s capable of sneaking up on a potential target and spraying it with an invisible powder so it can be tracked down at will, but not just for the sake of killing people. According to the Danger Room, the military claims this could also come in handy for “identifying friendly forces” and “tracking wildlife.” Ha, sure.
The UK’s version of the Pentagon did a study on UAVs and concluded that their increasing role in warfare could to lead to an “incremental and involuntary journey towards a Terminator-like reality.” Well, that sounds positively frightening. Says the report: “Autonomous systems will, in effect, be self-aware and their response to inputs indistinguishable from, or even superior to, that of a manned aircraft.” Read more »
For the past two years, at the request of the Mexican government, the U.S. has been flying Predator drones into the drug war ravaged country to assist authorities there reports the AP. Mexico’s National Security Council said the flights “have been particularly useful in achieving various objectives of combating crime and have significantly increased Mexican authorities’ capabilities and technological superiority.” Then why does the drug violence south of the border continue to escalate?
According to Aviation Week, defense contractor Northrop Grumman has completed the critical design review for the blimp-like drone they’re building for the U.S. Army. The Long Endurance Multi-Intelligence Vehicle or LEMV, was designed to fly at an altitude of 20,000 feet for three weeks while toting surveillance equipment and an array of sensors. Assembly is set to start in February and by summer 2011 it will be operational and most likely tested in Afghanistan before the NYPD is allowed to buy a few of their own.
Predator drones are great at killing militants abroad, destabilizing Pakistan, and now, zeroing in on illegal Mexicans crossing the border. Since there’s no reason for the U.S. to just use its military assets in war zones, UAVs have been deployed to Texas and at the urging of Rep. Henry Cuellar, a Democrat, footage was released detailing some of their latest missions over the Rio Grande. It’s not all that exciting since the drones haven’t been armed with missiles…yet, but just you wait and see.
This iPhone controlled mini-drone is capable of transmitting video and one of the most mischievous gadgets ever produced.
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