Oshkosh Demos Driver-less M-ATV in Paris

By TOM KINGTON There is something weird about driving in a mud spattered armored vehicle around a dusty shanty town built in a Paris car park on a Thursday lunchtime. What is even weirder is that the vehicle – an Oshkosh M-ATV – is swerving round rocks and navigating gaps between shacks, although no-one is…

Is Obama’s Drone Program Legal? Former Senior CIA Lawyer Isn’t Saying.

Memoirs often offer former senior US government officials an outlet to comment on programs about which they largely were silent while in office. When it comes to the legality of the Obama administration’s armed-drone program, such candor is needed. But, in his new memoir, the CIA’s former top lawyer is mostly mum on the topic.

US to Send More Drones, Missiles to Iraq

As the Iraqi government struggles to contain the exploding violence that slaughtered more than 8,000 civilians in 2013—which the United Nations says is the highest level of violence since 2008—the Baghdad government is looking to the United States for help. According to a report in the New York Times, Iraq has requested ten relatively low-tech…

Former Pentagon “Drone” Lawyer Confirmed as New DHS Chief

On Thursday, the Senate overwhelmingly confirmed Jeh Johnson to be the fourth head of the Department of Homeland Security since its creation in 2002, by a vote of 78-16. President Obama’s nominee—who faced tough confirmation questions from a group of Republican Senators who represent border states concerned about spillover violence from gang violence in Mexico—is…

Chinese UCAV Takes Maiden Flight

Photographs have appeared on Chinese military blogs purportedly showing the maiden flight of the Lijian (Sharp Sword) unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV). The photographs first appeared on Chinese language military websites: lt.cjdby.net and huanqiu.com on Nov. 21, supposedly the same day the flight occurred. According to lt.cjdby, the Lijian was designed by Shenyang Aircraft Design…

Video: Drone Crashes into Lake

UPDATE: Word from a source that the drone was a DJI Phantom, a four rotor aircraft that’s about a foot across. Ontario Tourism, busy trying to capture the Limberlost Forest and Wildlife Reserve from the air, had a small drone go down this weekend.  It’s a pretty view, and the drone appears to be getting…

AUVSI: Photo Wrapup

  Last week, Washington DC played host to the world’s largest “drone conference” – the annual Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) convention. The size of the event has grown alongside the use of unmanned systems, with show officials putting out a final tally of “more than 8,100 attendees and nearly 600 exhibitors.” With another…

Should U.S. Kill Another American Al-Qaida Operative? Sen. Graham Says Yes.

When does an American citizen give up his Constitutional rights — specifically, one who has joined al-Qaida and called for violence against the United States? It’s a legal question two U.S. administrations have failed to clearly answer. And, it seems, does not fret much about when a U.S. citizen becomes an al-Qaida threat and is…

Army’s Giant Surveillance Blimp to Start Tracking Objects in DC Region

While Congress debates the merits of spending tens of millions of dollars to add missile interceptors on the East Coast while increasing the number already in place out West, a long-running developmental Army radar system is packing up and heading for Maryland. From May 4 to June 14, Raytheon’s JLENS, or Joint Land Attack Cruise…