MILITARY STRATEGY TO FIGHT THE WAR IN AFGHANISTAN: drones to replace infantry that can carry and fire everything from a machine gun to a rocket launcher
- It can carry and fire military weapons including rifles and grenade launchers
- The drone can carry up to 22 pounds (10 kilograms) and is remotely operated
- It has the potential to be deployed in areas that can't be reached by soldiers
- The drone have already been ordered by the Israeli military and they're also being pitched for use by the US military
- THESE DRONES CAN BE USED IN AFGHANISTAN AND NORTH KOREA
MQ-9 Reaper drones are being prepared to protect Guam from a North Korea attack, it has been revealed.
The move follows the recent huge tensions between America and North Korea, and comes as North Korea has claimed current U.S.-South Korea joint military drills are 'secret operations' to oust Kim Jong-un as leader.
The new system is based on one tested in June 2016, that saw teams of modified MQ-9 Reaper drones used to track missile launches and feed crucial data to Navy interceptor warships offshore, and experts say the effects could be 'game changing'.
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Pairs of MQ-9 drones (stock image pictured) will work together to act as 'eyes in the sky' using infrared sensors to detect the heat from missile launches, and working together to pinpoint their location.
'The biennial exercise focuses on improving tactical and technical coordination among its participants, including the detection, tracking and reporting of ballistic targets,' the Navy said at the time.
Now, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, which makes the Reaper, is working to improve its ability to contribute to missile defense.
'Let's just say that within the next few years, there's lots of improvements in the tracking capability,' company president David Alexander told reporters last week at the company's headquarters here, according to Defence One.
'The accuracy in the early part of the boost phase that this provides is game-changing,' he said, before adding 'If I say any more, I might get into trouble.'
Raytheon's Multi-Spectral Targeting System (MTS) provides electro-optical/ infrared (EO/IR), laser designation, and laser illumination capabilities integrated in a single sensor package. Rayhteon
Their electro-optical infrared sensors can detect the heat of a missile as it enters its boost phase, and a pair of these modified drones can triangulate on the plume to obtain 3D targeting data, helping interceptor ships draw a better bead on the flying missiles.
According to Defence One, the U.S. Missile Defense Agency wants to reduce to one the number of Reapers needed to track enemy launches, likely by adding a tracking laser to keep tabs on the soaring missile, the source said.
Further into the future, Alexander said that the company's large, jet-powered Predator C 'Avenger' drone could add a layer of surveillance and targeting data to North Korea — or anywhere else the military might want one.
This would allow a more complex sensor package to be used.
Alexander said a Predator C, equipped for an MS-177 and priced at between $12 million to $15 million, might be able to do a similar job.
And in the future, a similar long-range sensor with 'very large aperture, so if you wanted to fly this airplane along the border of someone else's country and look deep in,' said AlexanderTHE PREDATOR C DRONE
The first flight of Predator C occurred in April 2009.
The aircraft is currently in an expanded flight test program.
The high-speed, multi-mission Avenger is a long-endurance, medium-to-high-altitude Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) system that can perform wide-area surveillance, time-sensitive strike missions over land or sea, and a host of other challenging military missions.
The larger Predator C could also be used to monitor North Korea, experts say
The jet-powered aircraft is equipped with a Pratt and Whitney PW545B turbofan engine capable of producing 4,800 pounds installed thrust.
Avenger can operate at speeds up to 400 KTAS, a maximum altitude of 50,000 feet, and 18 hours endurance. Its significant payload capacity enables it to carry multiple sensors, while its internal weapons bay can house 3,500 pounds of precision munitions.
A Florida based startup has developed a done that can carry and fire military weapons, including rifles and grenade launchers.
The TIKAD drone, which was tested on a target in Israel in 2015, is remotely-operated and has been refined to absorb recoil motion from the firing of a weapon.
The drone, which has the potential to reduce the number of boots on the ground in conflict situations, has already been ordered by the Israeli military and is being pitched for use by the US military.
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The TIKAD drone, which was tested on a target in Israel in 2015, has been refined to absorb recoil motion from the firing of a weapon
Duke Robotics co-founder and 20-year Israeli military veteran Lieutenant Colonel Raziel Atuar told Defense One that the drone can carry up to 22 pounds (10 kilograms) and is remotely operated.
This means that a person would control the multirotor drone's flight and targeting from a distance.
THE TIKAD DRONE
A Florida based startup has developed that can carry and fire military weapons, including rifles and grenade launchers.
The TIKAD drone, which was tested on a target in Israel in 2015, has been refined to absorb recoil motion from the firing of a weapon.
Florida based startup Duke Robotics has developed a done that can carry and fire military weapons, including rifles and grenade launchers
The drone can carry up to 22 pounds (10 kilograms) and is remotely operated.
This means that a person would control the multirotor drone's flight and targeting from a distance.
The TIKAD can be deployed above water and ends with a minimum risk situation.
Until now, troops had to be there to investigate.
The TIKAD can be deployed above water and ends with a minimum risk situation. Until now, troops had to be there to investigate
The TIKAD can be deployed above water and ends with a minimum risk situation.
Until now, troops had to be there to investigate.
According to a video by Duke Robotics, the drone can identify enemies and be deployed in areas that human soldiers cannot reach or are simply dangerous.
When the Israeli military tested a 30-pound (13-kilogram) rifle on an consumer drone supplied by Duke Robotics, it was able to stay in the air for just five minutes.
But this was an off-the-shelf drone, and the design has since been improved.
Duke Robotics co-founder Raziel Atuar said that he was inspired to design the drone after he grew fed-up of seeing his fellow soldiers and civilians die in street battles in Israel.
The drone can carry up to 22 pounds (10 kilograms) and is remotely operated. This means that a person would control the multirotor drone's flight and targeting from a distance
'You have small groups [of adversaries] working within crowded civilian areas using civilians as shields,' Atuar said.
'But you have to go in.
'Even to just get a couple of guys with a mortar, you have to send in a battalion and you lose guys.
According to a video by Duke Robotics, the drone can identify enemies and be deployed in areas that human soldiers cannot reach or are simply dangerous
'People get hurt. '
'The operational challenge, it bothered us.'
In 2016, the US Department of Defense chose the TIKAD drone as the winner of the 2016 terror combat competition.
In 2016, the US Department of Defense chose the TIKAD drone as the winner of the 2016 terror combat competition
The TIKAD drone, which was tested on a target in Israel in 2015, has been refined to absorb recoil motion from the firing of a weapon
This isn't the first done that's been developed for military purposes.
In July of this year, the US army revealed an experimental drone that resembles a flying squirrel, relying on tilt-rotors to ‘transform in flight.’
The design could allow for unmanned craft that work alongside soldiers on the field in real time, acting as an extra set of eyes to scout out potential dangers ahead.
When the Israeli military tested a 30-pound (13-kilogram) rifle on an consumer drone supplied by Duke Robotics, it was able to stay in the air for just five minutes. But this was an off-the-shelf drone, and the design has since been improved
Lieutenant Colonel Raziel Atuar, a 20-year Israeli military veteran and the co-founder of Duke Robotics, said that he was inspired to design the drone after he grew fed-up of seeing his fellow soldiers and civilians die in street battles in Israel
While previous attempts to create drones of this kind combine a typical quadrotor and a fixed wing aircraft, the new approach allows the motors themselves to tilt, to optimize weight and efficiency.
It uses a large half-circle of orange paper to slow its movements, and, using a motion capture system, the position of the craft can be tracked as it flies, and these these coordinates can be used for optimal control.
And last year in 2016, the 'bomb robot' killing of a suspected Dallas shooter may have been the first lethal use of an automated device by American police.
In July of this year, the US army revealed an experimental drone that resembles a flying squirrel, relying on tilt-rotors to ‘transform in flight.’ According to the experts, this design could allow for unmanned craft that work alongside soldiers, scouting out potential dangers
The US Army has revealed an experimental drone that resembles a flying squirrel (pictured), relying on tilt-rotors to ‘transform in flight.’ The new approach allows the motors themselves to tilt, to optimize weight and efficiency
It was not immediately clear what kind of device was used by the Explosive Ordnance Squad in Dallas, but the force is known to have access to a Northrop Grumman Remotec Andros F6A or F6B, a ground drone and standard model for police and military use.
William Flanagan, a retired deputy police chief from New York's Nassau County who now does law enforcement and technology consulting, speculated that police in Dallas probably equipped their robot with a low-powered explosive - possibly one similar to what bomb squads use to blow up suspicious packages - that would only disable what's closest to it.
The Dallas police force is known to have access to a Northrop Grumman Remotec Andros F6A or F6B, a standard model for police and military use
It was not immediately confirmed what device was used in Dallas, Texas. Here, Arlington Fire Department officials stand by a robot bomb disposal vehicle made by Northrop Grumman, a standard model for police and military use and one of three at the department's disposal
- The Armored Ground Vehicle (AGV) and Armored Gun System (AGS) programs also wasted tens of billions of dollars before being cancelled without achieving their intended goals. These programs were chiefly defeated by an overly bureaucratic Army acquisition system, and the fact that the Army had asked for far too much from the defense industry, demanding many new and unproven technological advancements.The FCS was the most expensive, most ambitious, and most transformative modernization program ever undertaken by the U.S. Army. It is often hypothesized that the U.S. experience in the first Gulf War of 1991 and in the NATO Kosovo intervention of 1999, led to the desire for a more rapidly deployable U.S. Army expeditionary force.FCS envisioned a highly mobile new Army, light enough to be air-deployable, yet lethal enough to survive on the modern battlefield. This survivability would be provided through the leveraging of new technologies, as well as superior command and control capabilities that would tie together all the various armed forces in a seamless information sharing and communications network.The Army set very high deployment goals as part of FCS, which would prove to be unattainable. The U.S. Army would strive to attain the ability to deploy a combat brigade anywhere in the world within 96 hours, a full division within 120 hours, and no less than five divisions in 30 days. Often referred to as “18+1+1”, FCS envisioned 20 different components integrated together to form the new warfighting system. Eighteen new manned and unmanned vehicles were planned, one computer network integrating all components, communications, information and services, and most importantly, the fighting soldier.Currently, the U.S. Army relies overwhelmingly on armored vehicle systems that were developed in the 1970s. These systems proved their worth over the last two decades. These “legacy” systems have been repeatedly improved since their introduction. These improvements have consisted of more powerful and efficient engines and drivetrain, modernized communications equipment, targeting and sensory upgrades, improved armor and improved weapons systemsThe U.S. Army currently fields the M1A2 SEP (System Enhancement Package) MBTs which are a significant improvement over older models. The latest improvement on the design is the SEPv.3 (version 3). The SEPv.3 achieves notable improvements in its fire control system, ballistics computer and thermal imaging sights.
The SEPv.3 has been strengthened against IED attacks, and has additional layers of graphite coated depleted uranium added to its composite armor. It is considered one of the best protected MBTs in the world, despite the fact that it currently lacks an Active Protection System (APS). It has been proposed that the M1A2 SEPv.3 can be retrofitted with the Israeli Trophy APS, or the Quick Kill APS system being developed by Raytheon. - DARPA says the US Army and Marine Corps have expressed interest in future GXV-T capabilities
Armored tanks are built to protect, but they weren't designed to manuvere through rough terrain or avoid incoming threats.
New concept vehicles have dropped the extra thick steel padding, allowing future machines to travel over 95 percent of available terrain and with more speed.
Created by the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA), the Ground X-Vehicle Technology program is working to produce 'nimble, fast and smart' combat trucks that are able to shield themselves from enemies and deflect targeted missiles.
A new concept design drops the extra thick steel padding from the machines, allowing the future fighting vehicles to travel over 95 percent of available terrain and with more speed. Created by the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA), the Ground X-Vehicle Technology program is working to produce 'nimble, fast, smart' combat trucks that can shield itself and deflect missiles
'DARPA's performers for GXV-T are helping defy the 'more armor equals better protection' axiom that has constrained armored ground vehicle design for the past 100 years,' said Major Christopher Orlowski, DARPA program manager.
DARPA awarded a total of eight contracts to a group of defense contractors and research institutes.
Corporate units include Raytheon, Honeywell International, Ledios, QuinetiQ and Pratt & Miller.
Also in the mix are Carnegie Mellon University, the Southwest Researcher Institute and SRI International.
The Ground X-Vehicle Technology program (GXV-T) will develop an array of technology in four areas for the combat machines: radically enhanced mobility, survivability through agility, crew augmentation and signature management.
The program is looking at new capabilities that will allow the machines to travel up steep slopes and travel around uneven elevations.
For instance, the group has interest in revolutionary wheel/track and suspension technology that would give vehicles access to all type of terrain and move faster on- and off-road.
The contract also includes ways to improve situational and threat detection, as well as technology that provides a 360-view from a control base-- technology used in commercial airline cockpits.
These cutting-edge machines are set to be autonomous, so they will need technology that can recognize incoming threats on their own.
And the program is interested in technology that includes vertical and horizontal movement of armor that can react in real-time to incoming threats, such as missiles.
'DARPA's performers for GXV-T are helping defy the 'more armor equals better protection' axiom that has constrained armored ground vehicle design for the past 100 years, and are paving the way toward innovative, disruptive vehicles for the 21st Century and beyond,' said Major Christopher Orlowski, DARPA program manager
DARPA awarded a total of eight contracts to a group of defense contractors and research institutes. Corporate units include Raytheon, Honeywell International, Ledios, QuinetiQ and Pratt & Miller. Also in the mix are Carnegie Mellon University, the Southwest Researcher Institute and SRI International. Without the heavy steel shells, these vehicles will be much lighter and easier to transport
GXV-T plans to explore ways to provide semi-autonomous driver assistance and the augmentation of key functions.
And although the vehicle will be able to see for miles, it will be designed with infrared, acoustic and electromagnetic stealth capabilities to reduce detectable signatures.
'We're exploring a variety of potentially groundbreaking technologies, all of which are designed to improve vehicle mobility, vehicle survivability and crew safety and performance without piling on armor,' said Major Orlowski.
DARPA says the US Army and Marine Corps have expressed interest in future GXV-T capabilities.
Autonomous machines are the future of the military, as there have been many discussions and plans surrounding autonomous weapons.
And although these futuristic devices would ease the burden for human soldiers, it also poses a threat to our safety and security, experts have warned.
At a recent meeting, researchers said they were concerned these war machines could engage in unethical behavior and become a playground for hackers.
Unlike today's drones, which are entirely controlled by humans, autonomous weapons in the future could potentially select and engage targets on their own.
These concerns, among others, were highlighted at the recent World Economic Forum in Davos, Switerland in January.
'It was one of the concerns that we itemized last year,' Toby Walsh, professor of artificial intelligence (AI) at the school of computer science and engineering at the University of New South Wales, told FoxNews.com.
'Most of us believe that we don't have the ability to build ethical robots.'
The contract will also include ways to improve situational and threat detection, as well as technology that provides a 360-view from a control base-- technology used in commercial airline cockpits. These cutting-edge machines are set to be autonomous, so they will need technology that can recognize incoming threats on their own
The program is looking at new capabilities that will allow the machines to travel up steep slopes and travel around uneven elevations. For instance, the group has interest in revolutionary wheel/track and suspension technology that would give vehicles access to all type of terrain and move faster on- and off-road
'What is especially worrying is that the various militaries around the world will be fielding robots in just a few years, and we don't think anyone will be building ethical robots.'
Others say we are just 'jumping the gun' altogether when talking about an AI revolt.
'For the most part weapons like this don't exist today,' Paul Scharre, senior fellow and director of the Ethical Autonomy Project at the Center for a New American Security, told FoxNews.com.
'Most systems are still fire and forget and even the advanced systems are designed not to choose a target, but to correct to hit the target.'
Scharre, who gave a press note at the World Economic Forum, also mentioned that even though autonomous weapons are not forbidden in war, it will be a challenge to create ones that comply with accepted rules of engagement.
'Even if they could operate lawfully, however, autonomous weapons raise serious moral and ethical challenges. Is it right to give a machine the power over life and death?', he said.
'And finally, even if autonomous weapons would be legal and moral, they may be extremely dangerous.'
The Ground X-Vehicle Technology program (GXV-T) will develop an array of technology in four areas for the combat machines: radically enhanced mobility, survivability through agility, crew augmentation and signature management. The program is looking at new capabilities that will allow the machines to travel up steep slopes and travel around uneven elevations
GXV-T also plans to explore ways to provide semi-autonomous driver assistance and the augmentation of key functions. And although the vehicle will be able to see for miles, it will be designed with infrared, acoustic and electromagnetic stealth capabilities to reduce detectable signatures
'The consequences of a malfunction or enemy hacking of an autonomous weapon could be severe.'
Autonomous weapons are not being used by any nation at the moment, but some have deployed unmanned vehicles in combat zones.
If the security systems safeguarding the autonomous technology can be overridden by hackers, it could cause havoc on the battlefield.
'There have been efforts to harden the data link's encryption to make the connection with the operator more secure,' said Huw Williams, editor of IHS Jane's International Defence Review.
'It remains a concern, no encryption is perfect and there is still the danger that a data link can be broken.'
Hijacking risks will increase as the system becomes more automated, regardless if the platform is still controlled by a human operator.
'We're exploring a variety of potentially groundbreaking technologies, all of which are designed to improve vehicle mobility, vehicle survivability and crew safety and performance without piling on armor,' said Major Orlowski. DARPA said the US Army and Marine Corps have expressed interest in future GXV-T capabilities
MORE AIRSTRIKES LIKE THE RUSSIANS DID IN SYRIA:
This is the moment 200 ISIS militants were annihilated by Russian air strikes as coalition forces look to flush the terror group out of Syria by battering them from the air.
Russia said it has intensified its air campaign in Syria to help President Bashar Assad's forces drive Islamic State militants from Deir el-Zour, a major stronghold for the group, killing an estimated 800 militants across the country this month alone.
Colonel General Sergei Rudskoi said Russian jets are now making 60 to 70 flights a day to target militants heading from other areas to join the fight in the eastern city. He says Syrian troops are meanwhile advancing from three directions to encircle Deir el-Zour.
In the most recent raids, 200 terrorists were killed when an ISIS convoy was targeted as they headed towards the eastern city.
Syrian government forces control around half the city and a nearby air base, both of which are besieged by the militants.
Rudskoi said militants fleeing US-backed offensives in the Iraqi city of Mosul and the Syrian city of Raqqa have poured into Deir el-Zour in recent months.
He said Syrian troops have also encircled Akerbat, an IS-held town in central Syria, and that Russian warplanes have targeted militant convoys trying to flee the area for Deir el-Zour.
Russia has waged an air campaign in Syria since September 2015 aimed at helping Assad's forces defeat IS as well as Syrian rebel groups. This month alone, Russian warplanes have flown 990 missions, destroying 40 armored vehicles, more than 100 trucks and killing about 800 militants, Rudskoi said.
An ISIS convoy is targeted in one of between 60 to 70 air strikes a day on the Syrian city of Deir el-Zour which has become a stronghold for the terror group
Seconds later, bombs are dropped on the vehicles, obliterating the militants travelling in them on their way to Deir el-Zour
Meanwhile, at least 250 US-led air strikes have pounded the Syrian city of Raqqa and surrounding territory in the past week, the coalition fighting the Islamic State group said Tuesday.
Coalition spokesman Colonel Ryan Dillon said the air raids targeted the greater Raqqa area.
Activists and monitoring groups have reported that intensifying coalition bombardment of the city has left scores of civilians dead.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said at least 42 civilians had been killed in US-led strikes on Raqa Monday, taking the civilian toll for the past eight days to 167.
Dillon said that the allegations would be taken seriously and investigated.
Since a US-backed offensive ousted IS from Mosul in neighbouring Iraq in July, the coalition has had more available aircraft to strike Raqa, he added.
Dillon said: 'We have increased our strikes recently especially since the end of the Mosul battle.'
Earlier this month, the coalition acknowledged the deaths of 624 civilians in its strikes in Syria and Iraq since 2014, but rights groups say the number is much higher.
The international alliance says it takes all possible measures to prevent unnecessary deaths.
'The avoidance of civilian casualties is our highest priority when conducting strikes against legitimate military targets with precision munitions, unlike the indiscriminate nature of ISIS tactics which result in an enormous number of avoidable civilian deaths,' the coalition told AFP in an emailed statement on Tuesday.
Russian jets, under orders of Vladimir Putin, are typically carrying out between 60 and 70 of these types of strikes every day
A cloud of smoke comes from the blown up vehicles targeted by the Russian airstrikes. Meanwhile, at least 250 US-led air strikes have pounded the Syrian city of Raqqa and surrounding territory in the past week, the coalition fighting the Islamic State group said Tuesday
Three vehicles are targeted by the air strikes
entering a compound in Syria. In a statement from the Russian Defence Ministry, Rudskoi said the province of Aleppo had been entirely liberated with control of 50 population centres and more than 2,700 square kilometres of territory taken back
In the most recent raids, 200 terrorists were killed when an ISIS convoy was targeted as they headed towards the eastern city
Russia on Monday hailed what it said was 'a dramatic shift' in the Syria conflict, saying that the Syrian army, with Moscow's help, was well on its way to pushing militants out of the central part of the country.
In a statement from the Russian Defence Ministry, Rudskoi said the province of Aleppo had been entirely liberated with control of 50 population centres and more than 2,700 square kilometres of territory taken back.
Rudskoi said: 'In the last month a dramatic shift has taken place in Syria.
'With the support of the Russian air force, Syrian forces have notched up a series of significant successes and won a major defeat over a big group of Islamic State fighters in the central part of Syria.'
With Islamic State fighters concentrated in Deir el-Zour, he said Russia had stepped up its reconnaissance and bombing runs in the area and that the Syrian army was closing in on the militant group from three sides.
Rudskoi said the Syrian army was advancing at a pace of 30-40 kilometres (43.5 miles) or more every 24 hours and that - with Russia's help - it was using new battlefield tactics such as surprise landings by helicopter.
'The main aim is to destroy the last stronghold of the terrorists in the Deir el-Zour region,' said Rudskoi. Beijing’s “serious plans for cooperation with Afghanistan, including in the economic sector”. “China is active both in the Silk Road Economic Belt project and in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization,” Kurtov said.
Destroying these projects or at least weakening their active development is the target of the US administration, he went on. According to the expert, Washington’s policy in Afghanistan has failed, and a new plan of the US president will not change the situation in the country. “From the details of the plan that have been voiced, we know that he is planning to beef up the military contingent with 4,000 military,”
If Islamic State (outlawed in Russia) is defeated in Syria, Afghanistan may become a new stronghold for radical Islamists, he pointed. “This Muslim international in the Middle East region, made up of radicals, will be looking for a new area of activity. Afghanistan may become this area,” he added.
“That is why, we could expect a growing activity and relocation of militants from the territory of the Middle East to Afghanistan as they will be suffering defeats, and thus escalation of a civil war in that country,”
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