Air Force's hunter-killer UAV now flying in Afghanistan

[fromxtor]

A maintenance Airman inspects an MQ-9 Reaper in Afghanistan Oct. 1. Capable of striking enemy targets with on-board weapons, the Reaper has conducted close air support and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions.

An MQ-9 Reaper takes off on a mission in Afghanistan Oct. 1. The MQ-9 has nearly nine times the range, can fly twice as high and carries more munitions than the MQ-1 Predator.

Aircrews perform a preflight check on an MQ-9 Reaper before it takes off on a mission in Afghanistan Oct. 1. The Reaper is larger and more heavily-armed than the MQ-1 Predator and attacks time-sensitive targets with persistence and precision, to destroy or disable those targets.

An MQ-9 Reaper sits on a ramp in Afghanistan Oct. 1. The Reaper is launched, recovered and maintained at deployed locations, while being remotely operated by pilots and sensor operators at Creech Air Force Base, Nev.

An MQ-1B Predator unmanned aerial vehicle prepares to land at Balad Air Base, Iraq, after a combat mission in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Predator aircraft fly intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Air Force Predator missions contributed to the 28 ISR missions flown Aug. 18.


Fully armed reaper.

http://www.air-attack.com/php/displ_...mq-9_armed.jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MQ-9_Reaper

I really like the idea of us going toward more and more UAVs. Not only is this helping our brothers and sisters in the USMC,Navy,and Army on the ground alive, it is also keeping our pilots alive. I know I would be pissed if I was one of the enemy and got killed by a remote controlled airplane.