Posted on 08/06/2007 1:23:34 PM PDT by BenLurkin
"The Navy has awarded a $635.8 million contract to Northrop Grumman Corp. to build a pilotless combat plane, called the X-47B, at the company's facility at Air Force Plant 42. The plane is part of the Navy's Unmanned Combat Air System Carrier Demonstration program, which was developed out of the former Joint Unmanned Combat Air Systems program. Above is a rendering of a J-UCAS plane launching from an aircraft carrier." Northrop Grumman Corp.
How long will it take the Dems to say this may save some pilots but it increases the carbon footprint of the Navy by being able to stay up longer. This must be stopped - this plane makes too much sense and might increase the U.S. defense capabilities while lowering costs associated and increase the flight/benefit ratio.
X-47B Pegasus
2 years ago
Northrop Grumman Starts Construction Of Its X-47B J-UCAS UAV
http://www.spacedaily.com/news/uav-05zv.html
Bombs Away!!!
Looks like a Cylon fighter.
YA, but can it say, “I’ll be back”?
Didn’t the Marine Corps try out an essentially “pilotless plane” in the Harrier...???
Maybe they had so many ejection over the years that’s just the way it seems...
Just remember, when the major ground campaigned finished after 21 days of combat Newsweek proclaimed this was only possible because of “Clinton's Army.” Everything following is Bush’s fault!
Oh, this is great. Now we’ll get to listen to artifical intelligences bragging about how hard it is to land on a carrier.
Then again, that will be a step up, compared to what we have to listen to today.
//running//
I’m sure they’ll just dust-off their ill-fated A-12 and sell it...pilotless...to the rustpickers as something new and different.
ping
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I'm pretty sure I would not want to mess with one, especially being flown by a kid with 30,000 hours of video game experience.
“Title should be Navy pisses away $635.8 million plus 1 billion in over runs. The air force has already developed a plane, why not use it instead of more development money thrown away.”
You could be correct about the Navy pissing away all that money but it won’t be because the AF has already developed a plane.
There have only been rare occasions where one aircraft could properly serve both the AF and Navy. The F-4, being one.
I have this feeling that this project needs to be rushed...
sweet. unmanned aircraft could take off and land on shorter runways. This could make for smaller aircraft carriers. It will certainly change aircraft carriers in some way.
The aircraft has to have two engines and a sturdy landing gear to take the “controlled crash” of a carrier landing.
The Super Hornet does not have very long legs.
If I’m the Navy and I see new aircraft like the Reaper UAV being deployed, I start to wonder if I’m becoming obsolete.
No, the Reaper is not a jet but does it need to be? It can carry 8? Hellfires, 2 500lb. GBU’s and fly for some 20 hours at 50K feet? The Navy can’t keep weapons over the battlefield like that.
I think the Navy is trying to go a step beyond the Predator and current piloted attack aircraft.
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