Pilotless research picks up speed in U.K.

摘要

The U.K.'s Ministry of Defence (MOD), like the U.S. Dept. of Defense, has started to examine the feasibility of operating pilotless strike aircraft as a replacement for current types. The MOD has launched a $52-mil-lion study of options for replacing the Tornado GR4 ground attack aircraft by the year 2015 with one of several new concepts. Candidates include variants of the Eurofighter, a new "off-the-shelf combat aircraft, a standoff air-to-ground missile launched at very long range from a transport aircraft, and an uninhabited air vehicle.