Small, cheap UAV's--the new weapon of terrorists?

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Small, cheap UAV's--the new weapon of terrorists?

What do you think?

44	Small, cheap UAV's--the new weapon of terrorists? By Travers on 2010-02-27 \| 8 comments

2		Travers \| 2010-02-27
		I don't think these pose as much of a threat as Newsweek suggests as they're not really that fantastic of platform for weapons delivery. Say you make one that's small, fast, cool and light. 25 kilograms, including explosives. That's not a lot of bang, but it is a lot of complication. You're still better off with satchel bombs. It however does afford you good aerial dispersal. E.g. Put one of these high above a city on a day with favorable meteorological conditions and spread some bio-agent. That sounds like a movie plot though. It'd probably be easier to go down to the local airport and steal a Cessna. Any bonehead can get one of those into the air. Should be much easier than a UAV. But then you still have to worry about obtaining a viable payload, which has proven to be pretty damn hard for these morons. The best thing they've stolen was jet fuel. Despite airport security what it is, there are real things in place from keeping that from happening again. Reinforced cockpit doors. And, best yet, a new mentality for Americans when it comes to dealing with situations. Reply to this

2		Ryan \| 2010-02-27
		This is a really frightening prospect. Travers makes a good point that finding a useful payload for a small craft is difficult, but what about good 'ol fashion arson? That's what really scares me...it's not about blowing things up, it's about burning them down. UAVs can be made (probably by most of the people that post here, honestly) to be about the same size as a large bird and can be programmed as fully autonomous. To be completely frank, I'm surprised we haven't seen stuff like this yet. Reply to this

3		Travers \| 2010-02-27
		See the bat bomb. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bat_bomb Reply to this

2		Luke \| 2010-02-27
		Did you keep this from the memory palace? Reply to this

2		Ryan \| 2010-02-27
		This is almost too crazy to be true, haha. Reply to this

2		kino101 \| 2010-02-28
		I suppose saying I told you so won't be appreciated, too bad cause - I told you so! Reply to this

1		Commander Cody \| 2010-02-28
		I agree with Travers that it's a over hyped threat. The amount of damage you would cause prob wouldn't be equal to the time and money you would put in to making the devices. Reply to this

1		kino101 \| 2010-02-28
		don't forget how easily people get terrorized. I'm surprised this hasn't been done, a little riacin dumped at some mucky-mucks party would stay in the news, and in every ones mind forever. one little helicopter,(great dispersal method too) set off on a prearranged flight path at the right time would change everything. c'mon Pinky, we have work to do... Reply to this