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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsA stray thought on the weapons we sell...
Do you think the hi-tech military equipment we sell overseas has any built in software back doors to disable the equipment?
Like, do the fighter jets we sell scan for some secret off signal that we could one day use to make the plane fall from the sky?
Like I said, just a stray thought.
Aristus
(66,446 posts)Like Robocop being unable to arrest an executive of OmniCorp.
If we ever go up one day against an opponent who uses our jets, tanks, etc. it would be interesting to see what happens.
In the Gulf in 1991, we went up against some of our own M-48 and M-60 tanks we sold to the Iraqi Army, along with the Soviet-made tanks Saddam Hussein bought. This was before electronic communications gear was a part of tank technology. And we wouldn't have needed a remote 'shut-off' switch anyway. The Iraqi troops were so poorly trained and motivated, they were sitting ducks.
NightWatcher
(39,343 posts)It would've been great had we this same tech (which I don't think exists) back when we armed the mujahideen back in the day.
Heeeeers Johnny
(423 posts)IIRC, the French did this with the Mirage fighters they had sold to Iraq.
As a result, they were able to effectively ground them during the 1st Gulf war.
DustyJoe
(849 posts)With so many chinese mfg circuit boards and chips bought from China in our weapons systems and personal electronics the chance of us getting hit in the ass by a back door is probably pretty high. Two articles detail how chips are scrubbed, remarked and sold to US military.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-18155293
http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/counterfeit-chinese-parts-slipping-us-military-aircraft-senate/story?id=16403599
mwrguy
(3,245 posts)With inferior avionics, etc...