5 ms·

I believe that a mix of 5th-gen airplanes and many UAVs, both with AI and with remote pilots hosted on stand-off AWACS-style planes, is the right answer. I bel

I believe that a mix of 5th-gen airplanes and many UAVs, both with AI and with remote pilots hosted on stand-off AWACS-style planes, is the right answer. I believe the same would be true for tanks. Lots of small and nimble tanklets remotely operated from stand-off mobile c&c centers.

jjoonathan 7y ago
Yeah, I think the big question is which style of C&C is better. A single pilot in a F-35 closer to the action, or a bunch of pilots further away in a sitting duck with a big antenna. The answer might even change as AI develops. If I had a budget the size of the US military, I'd want both.
- qaq 7y ago
  Once all the LEO satellite communication projects are up and running you could be pretty far and still get decent performance.
  - DuskStar 7y ago
    I think directed-energy ASAT weapons will be deployable around that time frame, so I wouldn't bet on the resiliency of LEO/MEO constellations there.
    - toomuchtodo 7y ago
      You're going to need a lot of ASAT firepower to put a dent in StarLink's constellation (thousands of minisats).
      - DuskStar 7y ago
        And thus lasers, which will presumably have a far higher sustained fire rate / magazine depth than ASAT-capable missiles. (And 100kW-class lasers aren't science fiction anymore, since the US Navy is deploying them for testing)
- andrewflnr 7y ago
  I've never understood how the F-35 pilot is supposed to command both their own plane and an army of drones at the same time.
nradov 7y ago
AI technology isn't something that actually exists today (outside of a few limited parlour tricks). It's science fiction. Procurement decisions have to be made based on reality. Remote operation is vulnerable to jamming and anti-satellite weapons.
- scotty79 7y ago
  AI sufficient for superhuman dogfighting runs on PC https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/technology-36650848 https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/technology... You could have a plane that goes from point A to B and shoots down anyone that tries to stop it along the way without any remote operation.
  - gdy 7y ago
    >shoots down anyone Like Iranian or Korean Boings?
    - scotty79 7y ago
      Sure. Just like humans tend to do. Or not if the right person cares enough to program it not to.
  - nradov 7y ago
    That's a constrained simulation, not the real world.
    - ceejayoz 7y ago
      Can you indicate where in the article or the linked study those constraints are indicated? Military flights sims tend to be pretty decent for this.
      - nradov 7y ago
        The whole scenario was unrealistic. Simple rules of engagement, pre-programmed objectives, little or no EW, no ground control or AWACS, no ground defenses. The technology holds promise and will eventually be capable but we're still decades away from something that can replace human pilots across the full spectrum of missions.
gdy 7y ago
Jamming

jjoonathan 7y ago

Yeah, I think the big question is which style of C&C is better. A single pilot in a F-35 closer to the action, or a bunch of pilots further away in a sitting duck with a big antenna. The answer might even change as AI develops. If I had a budget the size of the US military, I'd want both.

qaq 7y ago
Once all the LEO satellite communication projects are up and running you could be pretty far and still get decent performance.
- DuskStar 7y ago
  I think directed-energy ASAT weapons will be deployable around that time frame, so I wouldn't bet on the resiliency of LEO/MEO constellations there.
  - toomuchtodo 7y ago
    You're going to need a lot of ASAT firepower to put a dent in StarLink's constellation (thousands of minisats).
    - DuskStar 7y ago
      And thus lasers, which will presumably have a far higher sustained fire rate / magazine depth than ASAT-capable missiles. (And 100kW-class lasers aren't science fiction anymore, since the US Navy is deploying them for testing)
andrewflnr 7y ago
I've never understood how the F-35 pilot is supposed to command both their own plane and an army of drones at the same time.

nradov 7y ago

AI technology isn't something that actually exists today (outside of a few limited parlour tricks). It's science fiction. Procurement decisions have to be made based on reality. Remote operation is vulnerable to jamming and anti-satellite weapons.

scotty79 7y ago
AI sufficient for superhuman dogfighting runs on PC https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/technology-36650848 https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/technology... You could have a plane that goes from point A to B and shoots down anyone that tries to stop it along the way without any remote operation.
- gdy 7y ago
  >shoots down anyone Like Iranian or Korean Boings?
  - scotty79 7y ago
    Sure. Just like humans tend to do. Or not if the right person cares enough to program it not to.
- nradov 7y ago
  That's a constrained simulation, not the real world.
  - ceejayoz 7y ago
    Can you indicate where in the article or the linked study those constraints are indicated? Military flights sims tend to be pretty decent for this.
    - nradov 7y ago
      The whole scenario was unrealistic. Simple rules of engagement, pre-programmed objectives, little or no EW, no ground control or AWACS, no ground defenses. The technology holds promise and will eventually be capable but we're still decades away from something that can replace human pilots across the full spectrum of missions.

gdy 7y ago

Jamming