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X-47B's First Cat Shot

What you don't see in this photo are all the irritated real airplanes holding short for the unscheduled hour long runway closure. :mad:

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
 
I'm sure the 20lb heads have thought this out completely, but what happens when it can't get aboard? can it tank? Are we gonna have a "buffer" of sorts for expected losses due to that sort of thing? I know nothing intimately of the program, just seems like too many what-if's to just put them in the drink when the first pitching deck at night occurs and it bolters over and over and runs out of gas. I'm not anti UAV, just curious about this stuff.
 
Boys & Girls:
This is called the "Beginning of the End" - for all of us.
 
It will be able to tank autonomously, from boom or drogue (from what I've read). There's a video that was posted a while back of the technology demonstration featuring a hands off F-18 plug. Pretty cool.
 
Fog said:
Boys & Girls:
This is called the "Beginning of the End" - for all of us.
Click to expand...
I disagree...any more than the DASH was, or the new Firescout will be, the end of helos...or Predators/Reapers/ Global Hawks and BAMS UAVs will mean the death knell of anyone else. New capabilities are cool, usually within a fairly narrow niche, although the ability for "mission growth" is good.

Carbon-based lifeforms with "the spirit of attack, born in a brave heart", in real cockpits, will always have a place.
 
Renegade One said:
I disagree...any more than the DASH was, or the new Firescout will be, the end of helos...or Predators/Reapers/ Global Hawks and BAMS UAVs will mean the death knell of anyone else. New capabilities are cool, usually within a fairly narrow niche, although the ability for "mission growth" is good.

Carbon-based lifeforms with "the spirit of attack, born in a brave heart", in real cockpits, will always have a place.
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I'm not so sure. Maybe not The End, but when I look 50 years ahead, I think the majority of jets on the flight deck will be unmanned. Especially if the first few years of fleet integration survive with acceptable UAV losses. This is total speculation, but it seems to be where we're headed. The niche will widen as the tech gets better.
 
Renegade One said:
I disagree...any more than the DASH was, or the new Firescout will be, the end of helos...or Predators/Reapers/ Global Hawks and BAMS UAVs will mean the death knell of anyone else. New capabilities are cool, usually within a fairly narrow niche, although the ability for "mission growth" is good.
Click to expand...

RO: You mean the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter on WWII FRAM'ed Fletcher Class DDs (that never worked)? I wish. I don't think pilots (not so sure about NFOs) will ever go away, but the XB-47 is to DASH what an F-22 is to a Sopwith Camel. Hope we all last forever, but these new babies are just build, buy & fly: they don't take leave, get drunk or come down w/ the clap. Sounds ominous to me.
 
gotta_fly said:
What you don't see in this photo are all the irritated real airplanes holding short for the unscheduled hour long runway closure. :mad:

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...


Edit and my apologies, the tag line for the video says it occurred in Pax. I wasn't aware they had an operable steam catapult there. Our squadron has been operating there with the X-47, and while they have caused some minor inconveniences, it hasn't honestly been too bad.

I agree that the human element will probably never go away, but this does bring a pretty amazing capability to the CSG that I think would be pretty difficult to deny ourselves of. It will be interesting to see these things operate on the flight deck where things are already really dynamic. I just don't think that the technology will mature enough to allow simultaneous ops with manned aircraft. There are just too many variables with respots, spinoffs, suspends, simultaneous launches and recoveries, helo ops, four guys directing different aircraft all in fairly close vicinity of each other, etc.

I definitely can envision a UAV only launch and recovery where nothing else is moving up there.

I guess the good thing is that they won't have to waste a whole day and night getting CQ done at the beginning of cruise, right?
 
I know one thing for sure...the X-47 isn't going to do anything useful until it downloads the latest version of Personally Identifiable Information and Information Assurance Awareness from the NKObot.

Plus, that damn thing sniveled four days last month so it could attend the iPad/iPhone wedding.

Yep, there's no replacing us good ol' warfighters.
 
e6bflyer said:
It will be interesting to see these things operate on the flight deck where things are already really dynamic. I just don't think that the technology will mature enough to allow simultaneous ops with manned aircraft. There are just too many variables with respots, spinoffs, suspends, simultaneous launches and recoveries, helo ops, four guys directing different aircraft all in fairly close vicinity of each other, etc.

I definitely can envision a UAV only launch and recovery where nothing else is moving up there.

I guess the good thing is that they won't have to waste a whole day and night getting CQ done at the beginning of cruise, right?
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What would stop someone from being right there to plug into it and walk around with it on the flight deck while it was being taxi'ed?
 
Brett327 said:
I beg of you, in the name of all that is holy, let us not have another woe is me lamentation of the end of manned flight. It's been done to death.
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Completely agree. It's tedious and painful to have to listen to people insist that they aren't, and can never be, replaced by increased technology.
 
Fog said:
RO: You mean the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter on WWII FRAM'ed Fletcher Class DDs (that never worked)?
Click to expand...
Yes...I did mean the DASH you speak of...
Fog said:
the XB-47 is to DASH what an F-22 is to a Sopwith Camel.
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And yet...the F-22 has exactly the same number of pilots as a Sopwith Camel...almost 100 years later.

Take no counsel of your fears. I firmly believe than UAS will continue to be "additive to"...not "replacements for"...manned aircraft capabilities across most military mission sets. ;)
Brett327 said:
I beg of you, in the name of all that is holy, let us not have another woe is me lamentation of the end of manned flight. It's been done to death.
Click to expand...
Harrier Dude said:
Completely agree. It's tedious and painful to have to listen to people insist that they aren't, and can never be, replaced by increased technology.
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Actually, I don't think you two agree at all. For what it's worth, I THINK I agree with one of you.
 
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