AP: Iraq shoots down US drone(unmanned) recon plane...

MSNBC

[RCW2001]

MSNBC reporting off the AP wire

First reports...searching for copy.

[glock rocks]

meanwhile, the iraqis are reverse engineering the drone into a camel dung cookstove. pictures at 11.

[Centurion2000]

The Iraqi's may be trying to set up a SAM trap to shoot down the aircraft that they know will retaliate.

That's why we should retaliate just this once with an ICBM with conventional explosives packed in it. We let the russians and the chinese know that we are firing off one of these first.

That should just totally unnerve someone.

[smoking camels]

you are stoned. good weed huh?

[LurkedLongEnough]

Totally invalidates the popular anti-war "thousands of body bags" argument, doesn't it?

[isthisnickcool]

"It was not a lucky shot!" Exclaimed the anti-aircraft gunner responsible for the shooting. "I've been practicing killing Americans for decades!"

Iraqi generals later announced a new training program called the "Baghdad Jane" (BJ) program. "Under the new BJ program each of our anti-aircraft gunners have had several face lifts and chest implants and their scores have gone up dramatically!" Said one Iraqi general. "The only problem with the program is that the "BJ Gunners" are now even more popular at their local Mosques. Because of this we have had to add more seat padding to the anti-aircraft gun seats and keep them supplied with lots of Chapstick."

[RobFromGa]

Here's one more Gipper picture for Merry Christmas.

[mhking]

Tick....tick....tick....tick....tick....

[blam]

"That should just totally unnerve someone."

LOL, maybe even the North Koreans.

[xrp]

They shot down Trent Lott?

[hchutch]

The Predator must have seen something important if Iraq scrambled a fighter plane and broke the no-fly zone. Most fo the time, Iraq is content to just send off AAA.

[null and void]

AIRPLANE? I thought a drone was Al Gore delivering a speech.

Close it's the SOUND of AlGore delivering a speech...

[spoiler2]

"The loss rates of recon UCAVs would cripple manned squadrons."

Who cares how many drones have been shot down? These are Radio-Control planes, designed to work in locations at altitudes that would mean certain death for the pilot of any manned aircraft.

This is a new program in the military, and we must expect an initial higher level of losses, until control systems become more sophisticated. Hopefully, they have a destruct button, that instantly renders any failing aircraft into thousands of fragments.

[montag813]

We should cancel the stupid Farm Bill and spend the $300 billion to make thousands of these drones and cover the Arab world with them. We should also fund "probe droids" a la "Empire Strikes Back" to match face databases and complete accurate targeted killings of Al Queda members.

We should have 2000 drones over the Pakistan and Afghanistan at all times. We should also use them domestically to patrol the Mexican border, coastlines and power plants.

[concerned about politics]

We're spending a billion dollars protecting people in the no fly zones.
Now, Saddam blatently declares war by shooting down our drone. Their jet was not allowed to be in that air space. If I hear anymore crap from the UN protecting this dictorial butcher, I'm gonna puke.

[pabianice]

A Predator has the same evasive capabilities as a Cessna 172. Not a very challenging target if low enough.

[Poohbah]

Memorandum

To: hchutch
From: SECDEF Rumsfeld
Subj: UAV losses

1. Yup, another drone has been shot down. This is the second one, IIRC. We lost a couple of Global Hawks before we got the landing software fixed.

2. Recon variants of the F-117, F-22, and B-2 would be many times as expensive as the drones, would take 10-15 years to deliver, and would be used a lot less because of the risk to aircrews.

3. The reason that UCAV losses on the scale we've had would "cripple" combat squadrons is that losing the plane usually equals losing the aircrew. Birds are replaceable, particularly when they don't have to be man-rated. Pilots are expensive to train, expensive to retain, very expensive to replace, and you also have to massage their egos every five minutes or they get depressed on you.

4. Right now, UCAV concepts are at about the same level of maturity as combat aircraft were in 1915--but the technology curve is moving much faster. We'll be at Gulf War standards before we know it.

r/s,

Rummy

[flamefront]

Let them hit it?

No, it's a likely diplomatic statement from Saddam.

Time to connect a few dots, folks. Consider a few recent events:

• Iraq invites CIA as buildup looms
• US rejects Iraq's offer to host CIA
• Iraq's CIA Invitation Probably A Stunt
• And now this act of shooting down a preditor.

Recall in Yemen how the CIA used the drones to smash a vehicle of terrorists.

Seems obvious to me. So I expect the media to miss that obviousness again.

BTW, how well is the supply of SAMs from China and Russia? And how good is the passive radar now that the Iraqi's have imported?

[BrooklynGOP]

Iraq shoots down US drone Oh, no! They shot Gore! You bastards!

[TexasRepublic]

Time for massive retaliation!