You have commented 339 times on Rantburg.

Your Name
Your e-mail (optional)
Website (optional)
My Original Nic        Pic-a-Nic        Sorry. Comments have been closed on this article.
Bold Italic Underline Strike Bullet Blockquote Small Big Link Squish Foto Photo
Submit your comments on this article
Science & Technology
X-47B Drone Will Carry 4,500 Pounds Of Weapons, Operate Independently
2012-03-21
The X-47B drone took its first recorded flight in September and the Navy announced it will be able to refuel itself by 2014.

The move will allow the X-47B to remain in flight well beyond 3,000 nautical miles, a long time, 10 times the ability of a traditional manned fighter. And it will be doing it with no one at the controls. Not only will there be no pilot in the cockpit, there won't be one anywhere. The drone will be programmed to fly autonomously and this ability may be the first in a whole new era of military action conducted by independently operating machines.

These robot weapons will have a human programmed flight plan and the ability to be overridden, but they're already raising some concerns. W.J. Hennigan at The Los Angeles Times talked to computer scientist and robotics pro Noel Sharkey who wrung his hands makes a good point. "Lethal actions should have a clear chain of accountability," Sharkey says. "This is difficult with a robot weapon. The robot cannot be held accountable. So is it the commander who used it? The politician who authorized it? The military's acquisition process? The manufacturer, for faulty equipment?"

Good questions. After all, the X-47B will be doing its own thing for indefinite periods of time. Hennigan points out that while flying, the drone will also conclude what type of weapons it's carrying, decide if it's under a possible threat, when it needs to be refueled, and where to find an aerial tanker.

The UAV will even perform the Navy's most difficult maneuver and land on the deck of an aircraft carrier. As Northrop Grumman's X-47B program manager, Carl Johnson says, "[The X-47B] will do its own math."
Posted by:tu3031

#8  Rambler, count on the fact that it will be a human who authorizes any missile launch. The concerns of Noel Sharkey are unfounded.

These articles are written to plant the rogue robot concern in the heads of the reader. That way the writer can pat himself on the back for being edgy. What the writer should actually do is slam his fingers in a door and call himself stupd, cause stupid is as stupid does.
Posted by: remoteman   2012-03-21 19:15  

#7  It's one thing to have an independently operating drone orbiting over a target. I am one of those who would like to have a human pull the trigger to actually launch a weapon.
Posted by: Rambler in Virginia   2012-03-21 16:59  

#6  Autonomous operation for a plane isn't that hard a problem. Commercial airplanes have been pretty much flying themselves for years.

I think solar powered planes aren't that far away that could keep flying for weeks.
Posted by: Phil_B   2012-03-21 13:20  

#5  Must have a good history of remote piloting with the UAV fleet to aid the programming scenarios.

Artificial Intelligence, after a few decades of unfilled promises, has made some big leaps lately with the advent of probabilistic robotics. It may sound wacky, but it seems to work. Witness Google's self-driving car which has gone 100,000 miles all on its own.
Posted by: SteveS   2012-03-21 12:47  

#4  but I wonder why a drone weapons delivery platform needs refueling?

To get back home. Tank up on the way to the target, tank up on the way back.
Posted by: SteveS   2012-03-21 12:44  

#3  Skynet was unavailable for comment.

(But some electronic-sounding cackling was heard from the area of the computer room...)
Posted by: CrazyFool   2012-03-21 12:27  

#2  Well, here I go again...
the Navy announced it will be able to refuel itself by 2014.

Refueling is good for on orbit observation, but I wonder why a drone weapons delivery platform needs refueling? Reuse from a airlaunch?
Posted by: Skidmark   2012-03-21 12:05  

#1  The drone will be programmed to fly autonomously and this ability may be the first in a whole new era of military action conducted by independently operating machines.


I remember fly-by-wire trials in heavy thermals and storm fronts. Only the standby pilots saved (most) of the aircraft.

Must have a good history of remote piloting with the UAV fleet to aid the programming scenarios.
Posted by: Skidmark   2012-03-21 11:54  

00:00