Garage-built DIY drone plane can cause serious damage worldwide

[Mr_B]

This is one cool looking drone. This thing could be a handy one

http://www.hollywoodtoday.net/2011/0...-cia-predator/

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[Windbreaker]

Based on what the wings look like, it doesn't have a whole lot of loiter capability. I would think something with glider-type wings would be better suited to the task.

It's stuff like this that will cast a bad light on the rest of us.

[SENTRY]

[2.7] US ARMY FQM-117 TARGETS / OUTLAW / BATS


* Relatively sophisticated targets like the Firebee or Chukar are often supplemented, for anti-aircraft gunnery training at least, by drone targets that are little more than relatively large RC model aircraft, not conceptually much different from that of Reginald Denny's early Radioplane drones. One example was the US Army's "FQM-117A Radio Controlled Miniature Aerial Target (RCMAT)", a small delta-winged aircraft powered by piston engine, built by RS Systems. It could carry a radar reflector, an infrared source, or a laser scoring device to allow trainees to shoot at the thing with lasers and not guns.
The first RCMATs were delivered in 1979, and about 30,000 were built. In 1983, RC Systems introduced the "FQM-117A Augmented RCMAT (ARCMAT)", which was an RCMAT fitted with various dummy nose and tail sections to give it an appearance similar to that of various Soviet and US aircraft in hopes of training gunners to recognize them. Thousands of RCMATs were converted to ARCMATs. The ARCMAT led to the "FQM-117B", which was RCMAT kit built in the form of 1/9th-scale model of a MiG-27, and the "FQM-117C", which was similarly a 1/9th-scale model of an F-16. These variants also had a number of refinements, such as "shoot back" laser to train troops in taking cover, and a "flash-bang-smoke" system that went off if the target took a given number of hits.

[Mr_B]

I do think that the stories associated with this kind of thing is just a means of fear incitement for the people who just don't understand what they are actually looking at.
The idea that the model in the stiry is a loiter plane have got to be kidding.
Windbreaker is right, in that this airframe is not suitable at all for loitering.
However, it is more likely that this one could be used to create a cover for a mobile ground based operation is more than possible.

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[sim_io]

I don't understand why this has to be in a r/c airplane with fpv. A hacker with a laptop inside his van can cause more damage in the middle of a city.