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Unmanned Aerial Drones Coming Soon Above U.S.

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the the-eye-in-the-sky dept.

cnet-declan writes "Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have been flying over Iraq and Afghanistan, but now the Bush administration wants to use them for domestic surveillance. A top Homeland Security official told Congress today, according to this CNET News.com article, that: "We need additional technology to supplement manned aircraft surveillance and current ground assets to ensure more effective monitoring of United States territory." One county in North Carolina is already using UAVs to monitor public gatherings. But what happens when lots of relatively dumb drones have to share airspace with aircraft carrying passengers? A pilot's association is worried."

6 of 841 comments (clear)

  1. huzzah by MORTAR_COMBAT! · · Score: 4, Funny

    hail skynet.

    --
    MORTAR COMBAT!
  2. what happens? by RedACE7500 · · Score: 5, Funny

    But what happens when lots of relatively dumb drones have to share airspace with aircraft carrying passengers? Hilarity ensues...

  3. Goddamn Homeland Security Slush Fund... by xxxJonBoyxxx · · Score: 5, Funny
    "The issue came to head when AOPA learned that the Gaston County Police Department in North Carolina had bought a "CyberBUG" UAV from Cyber Defense Systems."

    Every fucking time I turn around another police outfit from Bumblefuck, U.S.A. has bought itself a shiny new toy with my "homeland security" tax dollars. (Add your least favorite story about the new SWAT team in a county with three homocides a year, an armored car for a town of 50K people, etc.) And because there usually aren't any terrorists anywhere near them, these knuckledraggers end up figuring out a way to chase the usual crowd of inbred drunks around town with it.

  4. Re:UAVs vastly superior to blimps by drgonzo59 · · Score: 4, Funny
    Take your pistol, shoot it down and wait and see who will come after you to you arrest you for shooting down their drone.

    Even better! Build you own drones to fight the drones that stalk you or build a EMP emmiting device and watch these suckers drop from the skies like frozen turkeys.

  5. Re:I've done it by rachit · · Score: 5, Funny

    > As a little kid I actually tried put this myth to the test it worked flawlessly.

    Where's that -1 Evil moderation when you need it?

  6. Re:Contrarian view by martinX · · Score: 4, Funny

    "The RQ-1A/B Predator is a system, not just an aircraft. The fully operational system consists of four air vehicles (with sensors), a ground control station (GCS), a Predator primary satellite link communication suite and 55 people."

    That thing is freakin' awesome.

    Except for the whole Deathbringing, and suppression of my rights and stuff. But still...

    --
    When they came for the communists, I said "He's next door. Take him away. Goddam commies."