Here comes the next generation of drones: Excalibur. When the 13-foot-long prototype eventually hits the battlefield, it will travel at 460mph speeds and carry four Hellfire missiles, which is twice as many as its predecessor.

Of course, it takes off vertically, so it needs no runway. It can fly upside down or right side up, firing its missiles wherever bad guys happen to be.

[Dvice]

A Warrior-Alpha drone from the US Army’s Odin Task Force fired against enemy forces with no pilot. The Predator variant was controlled by plain soldiers. And so we get another step closer to me covered in robot blood, in a field full of Terminators, chewing on a cigar and firing off rounds everywhere. I was all set to retire in about 20 years too. Metal bastards!

Bring it on.

[Wired]

This Mule unmanned aerial vehicle is huge and fast. Right now it’s just going through its first wind tunnel testing, but someday it may be hauling injured troops back to base with no pilot needed.

That means that troops can be picked up faster and receive help faster.

Have a look at these specs:

With a payload of 318kg (700lb) per single 31km (57nm) radius sortie, each Mule will be capable of delivering about 3,180kg over 24h, including the ferrying on return trips of casualties where medevac flights are needed. Mule’s maximum operating altitude is 12,000ft (3,660m).

[Flightglobal]

For the first time in human history, an unmanned machine has engaged and destroyed another unmanned machine in real honest to God combat. It happened a week ago in Iraq, when a MQ-9 Reaper killed a remote controlled vehicle that was carrying a bomb. Sounds harmless enough. Now stop and think. I know, doesn’t look good at all does it? Hunker down in your robot-proof bomb shelters if you’ve got one.

The MQ-9 was operated by the 46th Expeditionary Reconnaissance and Attack Squadron and it destroyed the RC vehicle via a laser-guided 500-pound GBU-12 bomb in southeast Iraq. Can full scale robo battles be coming? Count on it. One day we may even choose to fight “honorable” and “Humane” wars using only robots.

Soon after they’ll come for us meat-bags and it will be time to face what we have created. Running like hell and crying in a corner is always an option and I’ve got new shoes.

[Aviation Week]

Robots come in all shapes and sizes. Sometimes in UFO form. UFO’s that drop bombs. This little UAV is capable of surveillance missions and can even drop a grenade-sized explosive device into places like building interiors. You won’t see it coming because it will have stealth on it’s side, being small and without external blades, it will just sneak-in your window.

Obviously it would be great for surveillance, but right now, it runs on gas, which makes it noisy. In the future they hope that an electric engine can make it quiet enough to be silent but deadly.

[Geekologie]