US military adds armed robotic helicopters to flee ...

The US military plans to add a new lethal drone to its fleet — a robotic helicopter for the US Navy equipped with laser-guided rockets, defense giant Northrop Grumman said Wednesday.

The armed Fire Scouts will mark a new era in naval warfare, offering an alternative to pilots flying attack helicopters or fighter jets off ships and reflecting a broader shift to robotictechnology across the US military over the past several years.

An unarmed version of the MQ-8B Fire Scout is already flying surveillance and reconnaissance missions for theUS Navy, using cameras and sensors inside a cone on the aircraft’s nose.

Northrop Grumman won a contract in September worth $17 million to outfit the choppers with racks capable of carrying up to eight 70 mm rockets, with four on each side, the company said.

“The operational system will be delivered by 2013,” company spokesman Warren Comer told AFP.

“By arming the Fire Scout, the navy will have a system that can locate and prosecute targets of interest. This capability shortens the kill chain and lessens the need to put our soldiers in harm’s way,” George Vardoulakis, Northrop’s vice president for tactical unmanned systems, said in a statement.

The Fire Scout had its first flight in December 2006 and is due to be deployed on new littoral combat ships under construction.

The helicopter, which is seven meters (yards) long and three meters high, can reach an altitude of 20,000 feet (6,000 meters), fly at a speed of more than 115 knots (200 kilometers) per hour and stay in the air for more than eight hours, employing sensors and radar to track targets.

The US Navy had a fleet of about 15 Fire Scouts and plans to build 168 of the helicopters, according to thePentagon.

One of the unmanned helicopters went down in the NATO-led air campaign in June.

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US Army to fly ‘kamikaze’ drones ...

A miniature “kamikaze” drone designed to quietly hover in the sky before dive-bombing and slamming into a human target will soon be part of the US Army’s arsenal, officials say.

Dubbed the “Switchblade,” the robotic aircraft represents the latest attempt by theUnited States to refine how it takes out suspected militants.

Weighing less than two kilos, the drone is small enough to fit into a soldier’s backpack and is launched from a tube, with wings quickly folding out as it soars into the air, according to manufacturer AeroVironment.

Powered by a small electric motor, the Switchblade transmits video in real time from overhead, allowing a soldier to identify an enemy, the company said in a press release last month.

“Upon confirming the target using the live video feed, the operator then sends a command to the air vehicle to arm it and lock its trajectory onto the target,” it said.

The drone then flies into the “target,” detonating a small explosive.

The California-based firm also said the drone can be called off at the last moment, even after a kill mission has been ordered. That feature provides troops with “a level of control not available in other weapon systems,” it said.

The United States currently uses larger Predator and Reaper drones to hunt down suspected militants inPakistan and elsewhere.

The robotic planes fire powerfulHellfire missiles and drop heavy bombs that can cause civilian casualties and extensive damage, which has fueled popular anger with the United States in Pakistan.

In the war in Afghanistan, US and coalition troops fighting the the Taliban can call in artillery fire or air strikesfrom fighter jets and attack helicopters. But the heavy firepower has been blamed by Afghan leaders for claiming the lives of innocent civilians and strained US relations with Kabul.
The Switchblade, however, is touted as a way to avoid killing bystanders.

“Flying quietly at high speed the Switchblade delivers its onboard explosive payload with precision while minimizing collateral damage,” the company said.

The US Army in June approved a $4.9 million contract for AeroVironment to supply the new drones as soon as possible. Officials have not said how many Switchblade drones were ordered or when the robotic weaponswould make into the hands of US forces.

Human rights groups have raised concerns that the use of drones by the CIA has allowed the conduct of a secret assassination campaign abroad without public scrutiny and little oversight by lawmakers in Congress.

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