F-16 Becomes a Target Drone.

[livingdead]

can i join, im pro in counter strike

you need to play some combat flight sim...

 

[Bilal.]

F-16 Versions - QF-16 :: F-16.net

 

[Saleem]

BBC News - Empty F-16 jet tested by Boeing and US Air Force

 

[Kompromat]

They will definitely use it on Taliban at Afghan-Pak border.

Hello Mr Genius.

These are called QF-Series jets which are used for 'target practicing'. US Forces turn some jets that run their service life, into QF series for shooting practice for the pilots and air defense net.

 

[Fist_of_God]

Here you can watch the first ever unmanned flight of F-16.

I think soon we will see them over fata.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcSgyKf3H8Y

(copy and paste the above link in new tab)

 

[madooxno9]

Go to the member's section, open a thread and introduce yourself. Thanks for the sharing !!!

 

[Fist_of_God]

Ok. thanks.

 

[Sher Malang]

Hello Mr Genius.

These are called QF-Series jets which are used for 'target practicing'. US Forces turn some jets that run their service life, into QF series for shooting practice for the pilots and air defense net.

That is well known to me too but you can't disregard the possibility of it's usage in Afghanistan or Pakistan plus it gives them a political cover to strike anywhere, any insurgent for any 'justifiable' actions against terrorism.

 

[Anotherangle]

I think the NEWS HAS BEEN POSTED BEFORE ME SO I DELETE THIS ONE, SORRY!

 

[Anotherangle]

BBC reports:
Boeing has revealed that it has retrofitted retired fighter jets to turn them into drones.
Watch the video online

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jcSgyKf3H8Y

It said that one of the Lockheed Martin F-16 made a first flight with an empty cockpit last week.

Two US Air Force pilots controlled the plane from the ground as it flew from a Florida base to the Gulf of Mexico.

Boeing suggested that the innovation could ultimately be used to help train pilots, providing an adversary they could practise firing on.

The jet - which had previously sat mothballed at an Arizona site for 15 years - flew at an altitude of 40,000ft (12.2km) and a speed of Mach 1.47 (1,119mph/1,800km/h).

It carried out a series of manoeuvres including a barrel roll and a "split S" - a move in which the aircraft turns upside down before making a half loop so that it flies the right-way-up in the opposite direction. This can be used in combat to evade missile lock-ons.

Boeing said the unmanned F16 was followed by two chase planes to ensure it stayed in sight, and also contained equipment that would have allowed it to self-destruct if necessary.

The firm added that the flight attained 7Gs of acceleration but was capable of carrying out manoeuvres at 9Gs - something that might cause physical problems for a pilot.

"It flew great, everything worked great, [it] made a beautiful landing - probably one of the best landings I've ever seen," said Paul Cejas, the project's chief engineer.

Lt Col Ryan Inman, Commander of the US Air Force's 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron, also had praise for how the test had gone.

QF-16 jet
Boeing said that this was the first time an F-16 jet had been flown without a pilot
"It was a little different to see it without anyone in it, but it was a great flight all the way around," he said.

Boeing said that it had a total of six modified F-16s, which have been renamed QF-16s, and that the US military now planned to use some of them in live fire tests.

However, a spokesman for the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots warned of the temptation to use them in warfare.

"I'm very concerned these could be used to target people on the ground," said Prof Noel Sharkey.

"I'm particularly worried about the high speed at which they can travel because they might not be able to distinguish their targets very clearly.

"There is every reason to believe that these so-called 'targets' could become a test bed for drone warfare, moving us closer and closer to automated killing."

 

[Side-Winder]

thanks alot for sharing

 

[shree835]

The US Air Force has test flown an F-16 fighter jet without a pilot on board for the first time, in the latest sign of the military’s increasing reliance on drones.The robotic F-16 flew for 55 minutes with an empty cockpit from a base in Florida last week, as part of a program that will see the converted fighter jet used as a target for pilots in training, manufacturer Boeing said.

“It was really amazing to see an F-16 take off with nobody in it,” said Michelle Shelhamer from Boeing, which has adapted the plane for the US military.

The aircraft is one of six “retired” F-16 jets that will be used as aerial targets for fighter pilots training for air-to-air combat, she said.

“They’re basically built to be shot down,” she told AFP. “It’s full-scale, real world, real life, combat training — not with a simulator or anything else.”

During the flight out of Tyndall Air Force base in Florida, the QF-16 reached an altitude of 40,000 feet (nearly 12,200 meters) and flew at supersonic speeds over Mach one, according to Shelhamer.

There was no pilot on board to experience gravitational forces as the plane performed manoeuvres, including a barrel roll.

The plane was operated by two test pilots from a ground control station and the flight went off without a hitch, officials said.

It was not the first time the Air Force has adapted old fighters as drones for use in air-to-air combat training. Since 1997, the Pentagon used more than 80 F-4 Phantoms converted into robotic planes for targets.

But the F-16s offered a faster, “more realistic” training target than the slower F-4s, said Tyndall spokesman Herman Bell.

The Air Force, however, said the F-16 drones would only be used for target practise and not added to the growing fleet of unmanned aircraft.

“I can tell you that there are no plans to use these aircraft as a combat asset,” said spokesman Master Sergeant Randy Redman.

“This is just the next step in the evolution of the training program to ensure that our pilots remain the best in the world.”

A leading expert on robotic technology in warfare, Peter Singer, said the conversion of the F-16s did not represent a breakthrough, as F-4s had been adapted in a similar way more than a decade ago.

“It’s not fundamentally different than converting past generations of fighters,” said Singer, author of “Wired for War.”

But the test flight offered a reminder of how robotic technology is spreading rapidly through the US military and other countries’ armed forces, he said.

The pilotless F-16 took to the air amid an internal debate inside the Air Force over the future role of drones, with some commanders sceptical of the potential utility of the unmanned planes against adversaries with strong air defences.

http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-international/us-air-force-converts-f16-into-drone/article5173252.ece

 

[Mritunjaya]

Scary.

UAV technologies is something India needs to build expertise in very fast. In fact I think its a good idea to convert the next gen stealth fighter program into a Advanced UAV program.

That we we can use PAF FA to address the current need and we can skip a generation and focus on moving from LCA to Advanced UAV that can do reconnaissance, Air defense and ground attack.

 

[IND151]

Very interesting development

 

[neehar]

so....how many f-16 s do they have??