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[Phoenix]

Boeing has been working for years on a flying, killer drone for the Pentagon. On Monday, the company showed off a full-scale mock-up of the latest version of this robotic fighter plane, the X-45C, for the first time.

Once it's done, the "unmanned combat aerial vehicle" is expected to weigh about four tons, carry 4,500 pounds of bombs, and have a 49-foot wingspan -- making it about 50% bigger than the X-45A. That's the plane, Defense Tech readers will recall, that recently dropped a load of smart bombs on targets in the Mojave Desert -- a first for combat drones.

The X-45C is currently being built in St. Louis, with companies like Green Hill Software supplying the operating system so the bot can attack and takeoff. It's expected to cruise at 0.85 Mach (560 mph), at an altitude of 40,000 feet. The Pentagon wants to start flying the drone over battlefields sometime after 2009.

Gotta give it to them.... she's a cutie

 

[MrAngryFace]

The govt needs to make that glider Skynet thing just to freak people the fuck out.

 

[Bregor]

This is definitely the future of air warfare, but I hope they have done their work on making sure that control of it cannot be usurped.

 

[FightyF]

This is definitely the future of air warfare, but I hope they have done their work on making sure that control of it cannot be usurped.

Heheh, some kid flying his radio shack plane unknowingly takes over this bomber...

 

[Phoenix]

The govt needs to make that glider Skynet thing just to freak people the fuck out.

And yes, I keep track of a wide assortment of military robotics and technologies.

Terminator prequel

The non-lethal-response weapon chosen for incorporation into the system consists of a pneumatically powered dart gun capable of firing a variety of 3/16-inch diameter projectiles. The simulated tranquilizer darts were developed to demonstrate a potential response application involving remote firing of temporarily incapacitating rounds by law enforcement personnel. The demonstration darts consist of a sharpened 20-gauge spring-steel wires approximately 3 inches long and terminated with 3/16-inch plastic balls. A rotating-barrel arrangement was incorporated to allow for multiple firings (six) with minimal mechanical complexity. (The spinning-barrel mechanism also imparts a rather sobering psychological message during system initialization.)

ROBART3

The future is coming a lot faster than people think. Robots are already being use in Iraq and Afghanistan to carry cargo/supplies around on the battlefield.

Flying VTOL Terminator prequel

Vigilante™ Helicopter Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV)
Overview

Vigilante™ is an SAIC-developed family of small, inexpensive Vertical Takeoff and Landing (VTOL) Optionally Piloted and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) that are based on the commercially available Ultrasport 496 sport helicopter.

Applications
Vigilante are fully capable VTOL UAV systems including air vehicle and ground support systems. All the variants of Vigilante have a maximum gross weight of 1,100 pounds, a main rotor diameter of 23 feet, an overall length of 26 feet and a main rotor height of 8 feet. Vigilante are easily transported via trailer towed by auto/truck/van and reconfigurable for a variety of datalinks and payloads. They can be operated by as few as two people.

SAIC's Vigilante

 

[MrAngryFace]

awesome haha. SKYNET IF YOU ARE LISTENING I SUPPORT YOUR DOMINATION OF MANKIND ASSUMING YOU KEEP PUDDING POPS IN PRODUCTION AND BRING BACK ANGEL THE TV SERIES!

 

[BuddyC]

awesome haha. SKYNET IF YOU ARE LISTENING I SUPPORT YOUR DOMINATION OF MANKIND ASSUMING YOU KEEP PUDDING POPS IN PRODUCTION AND BRING BACK ANGEL THE TV SERIES!

I concur, but also postulate that my ex-girlfriends and all related company be publicly executed.

 

[GIR]

The Pentagon wants to start flying the drone over battlefields sometime after 2009.

Good to see the U.S has some more wars planned for next decade too.

 

[Willco]

I concur, but also postulate that my ex-girlfriends and all related company be publicly executed.

HEY!