Whoops Navy drone strays from program

In summary, a renegade unmanned drone flew near the nation's capital, causing concern and prompting the Navy to ground its fleet of drones for investigation. However, despite this incident, the conversation participants express their support for the advancement of drone technology. One participant shares a story from the 1970s about a similar incident involving remote-controlled power boats aboard a Navy ship. In the end, the drone was lost at sea and the Navy has had previous experience with losing control of remote devices.
  • #1
mugaliens
197
1
http://news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_upshot/20100826/tc_yblog_upshot/renegade-unmanned-drone-wandered-skies-near-nations-capital" [Broken]

I'm glad the grounded the "fleet" until they figure out what happened. If anything, the Navy is usually fairly conservative with respect to their ops. I am all for drones, though, and hope they continue their advancement.
 
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  • #2
I for one welcome our new skynet overlords.

Or maybe it's like Eagle Eye and all we need is the (spoiler alert!)
twin brother to finish the job
 
  • #3
LOL, reminds me of a sea story.

I was aboard the USS JFK in the early '70's when they brought aboard 2 remote controlled power boats. they were between 15 - 20 ft long each powered by a massive v8 engine. The idea was to use them as bombing targets which would be too small and moving to fast for the planes to actually hit. They put the first one in the water, powered it up, it took off never to be seen again. It was out of control range before they ever got control of it. They managed to get control of the 2nd one but much to their dismay a plane manged to but a small dummy bomb right through it. The ship came along side of it, all we could see was about 3ft of bow sticking out of the water, divers dropped into the water and tied a line to the exposed tie downs. The ships crane attempted to lift it only to have the tie downs tear loose. The were designed to lift the boat, not the boat full of water! After the divers failed to get a net under it they gave up and called out the Marines who opened with rifle fire. We watched as it disappeared under the waves.

So I would say the Navy has some long term experience in loosing control of remote devices!
 

1. What caused the Navy drone to stray from its program?

The Navy drone strayed from its program due to a technical malfunction that caused it to lose communication with its operators.

2. Was the Navy drone carrying any sensitive information?

No, the Navy drone was not carrying any sensitive information. It was on a routine training mission and did not have any classified data on board.

3. How long was the Navy drone off course?

The Navy drone was off course for approximately 30 minutes before it was successfully recovered by its operators.

4. Has this type of incident happened before?

Yes, there have been a few instances where Navy drones have strayed from their designated flight paths due to technical malfunctions.

5. What steps are being taken to prevent similar incidents in the future?

The Navy is currently investigating the cause of the technical malfunction and taking necessary steps to prevent similar incidents in the future. This may include implementing new protocols and procedures for drone operations.

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