US robot bomber will leave no place to hide

[Judi Lynn]

US robot bomber will leave no place to hide
November 28, 2003

It is the latest in the US military's quest for faster, more lethal, remotely operated weaponry - an aircraft that could bomb targets anywhere on Earth within a scant two hours of taking off from the United States.

With no crew, the robot bomber would streak at eight times the speed of sound and have a 32 200km range, putting the entire globe within its deadly reach.

The Department of Defence and the US Air Force are jointly sponsoring the programme, known as Force Application and Launch from the Continental United States - Falcon.

"The bottom line is, what we want to be able to do is have the capability to strike anywhere on the globe in less than two hours," said Jan Walker, a spokeswoman for the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency in Arlington, Virginia. (snip/...)

http://www.capeargus.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=55&fArticleId=296279

:nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[thebigidea]

1. its a Super Tom Servo with thrush pipes and glass packs!

[Capt_Nemo]

2. Been there, done that: it is called ICBM

Fancy concept clothing for pork barrel...

[Voice_of_Europe]

17. not quite THAT fast...

but it's one that comes back after dropping its load...

[newyawker99]

19. Hi Voice_of_Europe!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[truthisfreedom]

3. faster, pussycat! kill! kill!

[Dead_Parrot]

4. Yippee! More death! n/t

[MrPrax]

5. F.a.l.c.o.n. It's a Missile?

This article calls it a missile as opposed to a--robot bomber??

http://www.defensetech.org/archives/000675.html

SPEED KILLS, MILITARY WANTS MORE

550 miles per hour is too slow. And a 1,500-mile range just isn't big enough.

The Tomahawk cruise missile may seem fast and far-reaching. But Pentagon planners want more. Late last week, they handed out contracts to 10 firms to start designing a hypersonic missile that can outrun the now-retired Concorde, and can hit a terrorist nest in Europe from the East Coast.

The Falcon, or Force Application and Launch from the Continental United States, project aims to fire a bunker-busting bomb into near-space, and then send it crashing into a target more than 3,000 miles away, at four times the speed of sound.

Speed is becoming an increasingly crucial component of how American forces fight. In the Gulf War, it took days for the U.S. military to identify a target and put a bomb on it. In recent engagements in Afghanistan and Iraq, that process was cut to as little as 20 minutes, in some cases.

But this quick response only happens when there are bombers and cruise missiles in the immediate neighborhood. If U.S. forces receive a tip that terrorists are in a part of the world where they don't have American planes in the sky, it can take hours, or days, to act on that information.
(more)

[Art_from_Ark]

7. "...hit a terrorist nest in Europe from the East Coast..."

Oh, yeah, I'm sure the Europeans would really LOVE to have a US missile taking out a "terrorist nest" on their territory

:argh:

[Voice_of_Europe]

16. Maybe we better join in the US missile defense program

We might need it sooner than we thought...

[soothsayer]

11. oh, lordy, they'll be bombing away in minutes acting on a "tip"??!

"If U.S. forces receive a tip that terrorists are in a part of the world where they don't have American planes in the sky, it can take hours, or days, to act on that information."

So now we'll hurl 3000 lb MOABs around the world based on a tip. Gee, I hope their tips are alot more accurate than their oh-so-good and long thought out intelligence about Iraq.

[dbt]

6. And just imagine what sort of

SUVEILLANCE capabilities this little jewel will have!

I was wondering who'd get the contracts:

The agency and the air force recently selected the programme's first contractors, a 10-company list that includes Northrop Grumman Corp, Lockheed Martin Corp and Orbital Sciences Corp.

:freak:
dbt

[Hav]

8. My dear American friends,

I fear the day when the fascists,homophobes,bigots and imperialistic maniacs take over your country...

[UpInArms]

9. you mean they haven't already

done so?

[shanti]

18. thank you

the future is NOW.

[NickB79]

20. Me too

And people wonder why I like to own guns......

[Neutrino]

10. Russia and China will have it also--

Technology is not endemic to the United States--and never has been.
The robots will be painted each nation's colors, so as to keep track
of hits and misses.

[bobthedrummer]

12. I wonder if this is the son of the hypersonic aircraft of Reagan/Bush?

Black projects, lasers, space based platforms all from 20-25 years ago but with improved tech?

[teryang]

13. Absurd

We have a really sick society. I guess we haven't figured enough cost effective methods to kill anyone and everyone, now we are going to have to invent the least cost effective means to kill people. Next, they'll be working on a machine to wish people dead. You think it and it happens instantly! Won't that be a technological advance?

[Voice_of_Europe]

15. Stop giving them ideas... ^_^

This idea is rather "good" actually.

Please stop having those ideas, you never know how much money they'd spend on it to make it real.
It's maybe not entirely imposible...hehehe... like some specific frequency which interacts with the specific victims brainwaves... *Wham* the target person drops dead... sounds futuristic...

Every major military idea started as science fiction... so better don't give them any more ideas...

[TheLastMohican]

14. PNAC world, complete and uncut

They want global dominance, but here is a tip, other countries also develop a similar weapon and the countermeasures.

May you live in interesting times. /Sarcasm