Drones in Combat

Military Drones are Swarming the Skies & Anything Goes When it Comes to International Law

Posted on September 25, 2023 by prizm

by Tara Sonenshine, published on The Conversation, May 19, 2023

Loud explosions rock the evening sky. Streaks of light appear like comets. Missiles rain down. Below, people scramble for cover. The injured are taken on stretchers – the dead, buried.

That is daily life in Ukraine, where pilotless vehicles known as drones litter the sky in an endless video gamelike – but actually very real – war with Russia.

Both Russia and Ukraine are using drones in this war to remotely locate targets and drop bombs, among other purposes. Continue reading “Military Drones are Swarming the Skies & Anything Goes When it Comes to International Law”

Swarms of Mass Destruction: The Case for Declaring Armed and Fully Autonomous Drone Swarms as WMD

Posted on July 28, 2023July 28, 2023 by prizm

Zachary Kallenborn, punlished on the Modern War Instititute, May 28, 2020

Drones and AI: this article is largely about projects that have not come to fruition yet. However, it is interesting to see what they are thinking about. I saw demos of a drone swarm back in 2009 at a conference. The were pretty bumbly at the time so we can see here that they have improved. Even so, they are not fine tuned or, apparently, fine tunable. The software has to solve problems on its own, so it cannot be 100% under control. Something to be concerned about.

In 2017, artificial-intelligence researcher Stuart Russell presented the “Slaughterbots” video at a meeting of the UN Convention on Conventional Weapons. When Dr. Russell and the Future of Life Institute released the video on YouTube, it quickly went viral. In the video, fictionalized swarms of drones recognize, target, and kill opponents autonomously. The drones assassinate activists and political leaders, and a slaughterbots manufacturer claims that $25 million of drones can wipe out half a city. Continue reading “Swarms of Mass Destruction: The Case for Declaring Armed and Fully Autonomous Drone Swarms as WMD”

Military Drones Swarming Ukraine Skies, Other Hot Spots; Anything Goes When It Comes to International Law

Posted on May 22, 2023July 28, 2023 by prizm

by Tara Sonenshine, published on The Conversation, May 19, 2023

Loud explosions rock the evening sky. Streaks of light appear like comets. Missiles rain down. Below, people scramble for cover. The injured are taken on stretchers – the dead, buried.

That is daily life in Ukraine, where pilotless vehicles known as drones litter the sky in an endless video gamelike – but actually very real – war with Russia.

Both Russia and Ukraine are using drones in this war to remotely locate targets and drop bombs, among other purposes. Continue reading “Military Drones Swarming Ukraine Skies, Other Hot Spots; Anything Goes When It Comes to International Law”

US and Taiwan Plan tTo Equip Kiev Regime Forces With ‘Swarms-of-Swarms’ Drones

Posted on March 30, 2023 by prizm

by Drago Bosnic, published on InfoBRICS, March 28, 2023

There’s very little doubt that warfare has changed dramatically in recent decades, with the tactical gap between leading militaries and those of local powers (or even the usually overlooked small countries) narrowing as the proliferation of unmanned systems continues unabated. With the advent of the information era, the abundance of war footage has essentially eliminated the once-assured readiness of tens of millions to go to war, leaving militaries around the globe struggling to meet their recruitment quotas. Losing even a hundred drones is certainly preferable to having ten soldiers (or even one) killed and/or wounded in action, particularly for politicians and their respective parties seeking reelection. As a result, drones, robots and other unmanned vehicles have become increasingly important. Continue reading “US and Taiwan Plan tTo Equip Kiev Regime Forces With ‘Swarms-of-Swarms’ Drones”

Slowly But Steadily, the Executive Branch is Bringing Back Widespread Drone Warfare

Posted on March 8, 2023 by prizm

by Andrew Corbley, published on Antiwar.com, March 7, 2023

Not at any other time in the 21st century has the average American kept up less with the Global War on Terror, and now three presidents later, the questions of legality, productivity, and collateral damage remain as unanswered as they’ve ever been. Continue reading “Slowly But Steadily, the Executive Branch is Bringing Back Widespread Drone Warfare”

Come Test Your Gear Against Russian Forces, Ukrainians Urge US Defense Firms

Posted on March 8, 2023March 8, 2023 by prizm

by Patrick Tucker, published in Defense One, March 3, 2023

FORT WALTON, Florida–U.S. defense manufacturers should bring their gear to Ukraine to try it out against an enemy that is more agile than generally perceived, Ukrainian special operators said at a SOF conference.

At least in the electronic spectrum, the war in Ukraine is constantly changing as both sides develop new ideas and countermeasures daily, the operators said, inviting U.S. firms to test their equipment in real battle zones. Continue reading “Come Test Your Gear Against Russian Forces, Ukrainians Urge US Defense Firms”

Predator Drones ‘Useless’ in Most Wars, Top Air Force General Says

Posted on November 22, 2022November 25, 2022 by prizm

by John Reed, published on Foreign Policy, September 19, 2013

The drones that have proved so useful at hunting al Qaeda are “useless” in nearly every other battlefield scenario, says a top Air Force general. So, for the first time, the Air Force is proposing culling the fleet of little, propeller-driven MQ-1 Predator and MQ-9 Reaper drones in favor of stealthier, faster aircraft. Continue reading “Predator Drones ‘Useless’ in Most Wars, Top Air Force General Says”

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