Pentagon unveils its plans for the future of war

[superbeets]

Smarter smart bombs, railguns and swarming drones soldiers can simply throw in the air: Pentagon unveils its plans for the future of war

• Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has revealed the hi-tech weapons
• Preview Pentagon's upcoming 2017 budget request of $71.4 billion

By MARK PRIGG FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
PUBLISHED: 20:39, 3 February 2016 | UPDATED: 22:14, 3 February 2016




Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has revealed the hi-tech weapons he hopes will keep America ahead of the world in warfare.
In a preview of the Pentagon's upcoming 2017 budget request, Carter said military research and development spending would rise to $71.4 billion from last year's $71.3 billion request.
He also outlined the previously classified research that he hopes will get funding.



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[superbeets]

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US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter revealed the technologies America hopes to develop for future wars


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[h=3]THE KEY TECHNOLOGIES[/h]Micro-drones that can be thrown in the air
Smart bombs with sensors similar to smartphones
Railguns that fit into 'the five-inch guns at the front of every Navy destroyer'
Swarming roboboats that can undergo surveillance missions
Turning B-52 bomber into 'flying arsenal'



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[superbeets]

'I'd like to tell you about a few projects SCO has been working on that we're funding in the budget,' he said.
'Some you may have heard of, and some we're talking about here for the very first time.
'In this budget, we're taking the long view.
'We have to, because even as we fight today's fights, we must also be prepared for the fights that might come, 10, 20 or 30 years down the road.'
First, he addressed smart bombs.
'We've recently been hitting ISIL with so many GPS-guided smart bombs and laser-guided rockets that we are starting to run low on the ones that we use against terrorists the most.
'So we're investing $1.8 billion in FY17, to buy over 45,000 more of them.'
'Another project uses swarming autonomous vehicles in all sorts of ways and in multiple domains,' he revealed.
'In the air, they develop micro-drones that are really fast, really resistant.


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'They can fly through heavy winds and be kicked out the back of a fighter jet moving at Mach 0.9, like they did during an operational exercise in Alaska last year, or they can be thrown into the air by a soldier in the middle of the Iraqi desert.'
He also highlighted advanced navigation projects that would use 'the same kinds of micro-cameras and sensors that are littered throughout our smartphones today, and putting them on our Small Diameter Bombs to augment their targeting capabilities.
'This will eventually be a modular kit that will work with many other payloads – enabling off-network targeting through commercial components that are small enough to hold in your hand.'


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Carter claims the Us is concerned about 'high end enemies'.
'To be clear, the U.S. military will fight very differently in coming years than we have in Iraq and Afghanistan or in the rest of the world's recent memory.
'In this context, Russia and China are our most stressing competitors.
'They have developed and are continuing to advance military system that seek to threaten our advantages in specific areas.
'And in some case, they are developing weapons and ways of wars that seek to achieve their objectives rapidly, before they hope, we can respond.'
He also mentioned swarm boats.


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[superbeets]

[h=3]THE PERSONAL DRONES SOLDIERS CAN THROW IN THE AIR[/h]US Soldiers could soon get personal drones small enough to fit in the palm of their hand.
Army Special Forces are testing the tiny 'black hornet' drones.
The 18-gram craft has three cameras and even thermal cameras to fly at night.

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Army Special Forces are already testing tiny 'black hornet' drones, which can simply be thrown

It can fly about a kilometer and stay aloft more than 25 minutes, and is controlled by a small flipdown screen and joystick which can be attached to the soldier's utility belt.
When needed, soldiers can simply take the drone from a small box that straps to a utility belt - which is also where the data is stored, as opposed to on the drone itself, in case it's captured.
The video feeds directly to a small, chest-mounted screen.
The operator steers it with a videogame-like one-handed controller, or sets waypoints to allow the drone to fly itself using the touchscreen controller.


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[superbeets]

Described as 'Star Wars technology' by researchers, the railgun can fire shells at seven times speed of sound, and penetrate concrete 100 miles away.
The weapon was on display to the public for the first time at the Naval Future Force Science and Technology EXPO at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C. earlier this year
Using electromagnetic energy, the gun can fire a shell weighing 10kg at up to 5,400mph over 100 miles – with such force and accuracy it penetrates three concrete walls or six half-inch thick steel plates.
Two prototypes of the weapon have been developed for the US Navy – one by British arms manufacturer BAE Systems and the second by a US firm.
Rear Admiral Matthew Klunder, head of US Naval Research, has previously said said the futuristic electromagnetic railgun – so called because it fires from two parallel rails – had already undergone extensive testing on land.


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A prototype of the BAE railgun which could be fitted to future versions of the Zumwalt


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[superbeets]

And for the water, they've developed self-driving boats, which can network together to do all sorts of missions, from fleet defense to close-in surveillance – including around an island, real or artificial, without putting our sailors at risk,' referring to China's man-made islands in the Pacific.
He also said investment in railguns will increase until it can fit into 'the five-inch guns at the front of every Navy destroyer, and also the hundreds of Army Paladin self-propelled howitzers.
'This way, instead of spending more money on more expensive interceptors, we can turn past offense into future defense – defeating incoming missile raids at much lower cost per round, and thereby imposing higher costs on the attacker,' he said.






[h=3]SELF-LEARNING ROBOT SWARM BOATS [/h]The robotic swarms work like a school of fish, or flock of birds.
Using a neural network as a 'living brain,' the robots can interact with each other, working from a set of simple instructions.
Each boat only acknowledges its neighbour, and will work together for monitoring, navigation, aggregation, and dispersion.
After tests in a simulate environment, the 'fittest' robots, those who have the most successful behaviours, are tested in a real world setting.








Carter also said the Pentagon is working to turn 'one of our oldest aircraft platforms' — understood to be the B-52 bomber, into a flying 'magazine' capable of carrying huge loads of weapons - but relying on newer craft for targetting systems.
The base budget for fiscal year 2017 is expected to be $524 billion, augmented by $59 billion for an 'overseas contingency fund' to pay for ongoing military actions in Afghanistan and against IS, defense officials told AFP on Monday.
America's gargantuan military budget far surpasses that of any other country, and exceeds the combined defense spending of the next eight biggest militaries in the world.

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[superbeets]

Their 1st wish should be for a real Commander in Chief

 

[ScottL]

THE PERSONAL DRONES SOLDIERS CAN THROW IN THE AIR

US Soldiers could soon get personal drones small enough to fit in the palm of their hand.
Army Special Forces are testing the tiny 'black hornet' drones.
The 18-gram craft has three cameras and even thermal cameras to fly at night.

The Chinese already lifted the technology off Hillary's cellphone.
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[Willie99]

Will Smith did a documentary on this

 

[ScottL]

Will Smith did a documentary on this

Gettin' Jiggy With It

 

[Willie99]

THE PERSONAL DRONES SOLDIERS CAN THROW IN THE AIR

US Soldiers could soon get personal drones small enough to fit in the palm of their hand.
Army Special Forces are testing the tiny 'black hornet' drones.
The 18-gram craft has three cameras and even thermal cameras to fly at night.

The Chinese already lifted the technology off Hillary's cellphone.
+4

r u sure? vettard is blaming that on "Bush"


personally, I just think he's not getting enough of it and he can't keep it off his mind, but I've been wrong occasionally

 

[ScottL]

Can't blame that one on Bush. She flew her broom all the way around China with an unsecured phone.