Armchair pilots striking Afghanistan by remote control
Source: CNN - Laurie Ure
CREECH AIR FORCE BASE, Nevada (CNN) — From a desert outpost northwest of Las Vegas, elite fighter pilots journey to a war zone in Afghanistan, some 7,500 miles away.
It might be the world’s longest commute, except that these armchair pilots at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada never leave the air-conditioned comfort of their command center.
Air Force pilots are employing remotely controlled fighter-bomber aircraft — known in military parlance as unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs — to fly combat missions over Afghanistan, hunting for insurgents bent on undermining Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s fragile government.
This is the future of aerial combat.
Sitting in a virtual cockpit is not as exciting as flying a fighter jet, but unmanned attack-plane pilots can enjoy a normal workday schedule — more or less.
“Seeing bad guys on the screen and watching them possibly get dispatched, and then going down to the Taco Bell for lunch, it’s kind of surreal,” says Captain Matt Dean.
The original drone was the “Predator,” armed with a pair of Hellfire missiles. It was followed by its bigger and far more lethal cousin, “the Reaper,” which carries four times as much firepower. The Reaper can carry the same bomb load as an F-16 fighter plane, but its pilots are not put in harm’s way.
The Air Force once employed jerry-rigged missiles strapped to unmanned spy planes. Now military commanders see remotely piloted aircraft as the model for the way future wars will be fought.
For over a year, Reapers have been flying two separate round-the-clock patrols over eastern Afghanistan, controlled from the Creech AFB command center, which has been strictly off-limits to the media until now.
Reaper pilots so far this year have launched 64 missiles and dropped seven 500-pound bombs in Afghanistan.
Originally a spy plane, the Predator was converted to a strike aircraft shortly after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center. Air Force technicians strapped two Hellfire missiles — one under each wing — and turned the unarmed “surveillance platform” into a remote-controlled killing machine.
By the weekend following September 11, the Predator’s operators believe they had Taliban leader Mullah Omar in their sights, but never got the authorization to pull the trigger.
this is some cool technology. with this a man with no legs could help fight the war.
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Once again, your logic is astounding...
Go watch the movie "Toys" to see where this "technology" came from and what it leads to...
Killing innocent civilians from a computer is much easier then doing it person...
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Whoever invented this technology was a coward and wanted to give other cowards a chance to murder innocent civilians... GREAT TECHNOLOGY...?> You r rediculous kenny
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what in the world makes you think they are killing innocent civilians with this.
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dude...toys is a fantasy-comedy starring robin williams. a comedy. you mean to tell me that you take what you see not only in a movie but a comedy to come up with idea's about things such as the government, the military and wars. ok, i've been suspecting that you are a loonatick but now i know. i'm serious, do yourself a favor and go get some hardcore therapy. i cant express how shocked i am that you aren't in an a mental hospital. not trying to be mean. i'm serious as a heart attack. please, get help before you hurt yourself or even worse someone else.
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Have you even seen the movie? It is the exact same premise? Do you not realize that a very large percentage of civilian as well as military technology starts off in movies before they become a reality?
You think that your words could ever hurt me Kenny?
I know that you are a war-mongering Bush-loving fear-driven fucked up individual and anything that comes out of your mouth I could give a shit about... you seriously are the one with mental issues and you are the one who should be in a hospital...
Go eat some hay you sheep... If you seriously disrespect me or anyone else on this server one more time without any reason, you will regret it...
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and it is much more serious then you know...
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Do you not realize that a very high percentage of technology that is used today and in the past, before it was in civilian or military use, was previously released in cinema video? I was merely making the statement that when I first saw "Toys" I thought it would never happen, but unfortunately it has came true...
Kenny, I have had enough of your insults... I have said nothing wrong to you... not attacked you... and now your are claiming that I am not mentally stable?
Your words bounce off me like tennis balls bro...
Your Bush-loving, fear-monging, war-loving statements are ignorant, astounding and I won't stand for it any longer... Last chance bro or Peace be with you...
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you have tossed around insults from the beginning. thats ok though. they dont bother me. i understand debates get heated. i am sorry though. i got too harsh and crossed the line that i have set for myself. its just that i was so shocked that you got your opinion on this matter from a hollywood comedy that i freaked out and got carried away. i have complimented you when your opinions seemed to come from intelligent sources. i have noted when we agree on a subject hoping that we could talk about them more. i'm not out to only talk about things we disagree on. going to war with iran for example. we both agree that would be a bad thing. i'm curious as to how you think we should handle the situation with them and what effects it would have on the world and america if we do. i made a comment about the "9/11 truth rising" i think it was called. a comment i'm pretty sure you would agree with. i mentioned nothing about the parts i disagreed with because i would be repeating myself. you already know how i feel about the 9/11 inside job theory. i got no response from you about it. it seems to me all you want to do is argue.
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