‘Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout’
courtesy of ‘gpjt’
The NYT reports that on August 2, Navy personnel at Patuxent Naval Air Station lost control of an unmanned drone which promptly b-lined for DC, making its way into the restricted air space over the city before operators regained control. The DoD blames the loss of control on the drone becoming self aware and embarking on a mission to destroy humanity a software glitch and have grounded the remainder of the fleet until they’re sure they’ve fixed the problem. The drone, an MQ8-B Fire Scout, resembling a small helicopter, was unarmed. It managed to travel about 23 miles under its own control before it could be ordered to return to base. I, for one, welcome our new robot overlords.
<a href=’http://www.flickr.com/photos/83536366@N00/4828532171′ title=’Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout’><img src=’http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4094/4828532171_7c77402060_m.jpg’ alt=’Photo courtesy of ‘gpjt’/></a><br/><small><a href=’http://www.flickr.com/photos/83536366@N00/4828532171′>’Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout'</a></small><br/><small>courtesy of <a href=’http://www.flickr.com/people/83536366@N00/’>’gpjt'</a></small>
Kirk is a Maine-born, military brat who moved no fewer than 12 times during his childhood. He came to the DC area in 2004 for his undergrad and decided that it was the place for him. Since graduating, he’s nabbed a job with the Fed and spends most of his free time hunting for cheap thrills in the city. Find out why he loves DC.
Pingback: Anonymous