S.W.O.R.D.S being deployed in Iraq

Remove all ads!

Well, the title sorta says it:
Gun-slinging robot headed for Iraq combat

So, there's these remote controlled machine gun turrets (basically) that can, according to the article, shoot a target the size of a nickel at 300 yards. My first response to reading this was, "I want one!"

Curious how other people feel about this one. On one hand its nice technology that keeps the soldiers out of harms way, but I wonder the effectiveness (they only move at 4mph). I wonder what this type of desensitization will do to warfare if it becomes commonplace - how easy will it be to shoot innocent women and children with a joystick controlled robot? Most of us have done that in a video game at some point.

On the other hand it provokes some humorous thoughts as well. What if the "other guys" develop similar technology? It'd be just like playing a game! You send your robots to go shoot their robots - cool! Real-life Starcraft.

I wonder what it would be like to be an Iraqi insurgent to be stalked by these? It might provide a fun distraction, firing their shoulder mounted rocket launchers at these things that are slow as mud. Then again these things might make swiss cheese out of them, hard to say.

Interesting stuff, any thoughts?

 

Maybe I should add the company that makes this thing to my portfolio

 

Sounds like the Terminator to me

Seriously though, it doesnt really sound very practical. The cost of one of these is bound to be much hugher then training a squadie. Add to this booby traps. A bloke on a joystick doesnt get the true feelinf of being there, even with VR. I think you will find blowing these up by traps much easier then killing soldiers.

 

That's so American: Finding a hardware solution to fix a 'software' problem.

Problem with the insurgency? No problem - we have a solution - get yourself some shiny new gizmo. That's all what Rumsfeld's transformation is about - beating the enemy through technical superiority. To me that seems a very American belief that one can engeneer a solution to any problem (which is an admirable mindset for an engeneer, but silly for a soldier).

It's just that it doesn't work in an insurgency.

Wars, and guerrilla wars especially, are still fought by people and in war people use their minds and their brains. They are very much low tech conflicts. A determined enemy can kill well with a cheap old-fashioned AK-47 and an RPG.

 

I think that is the purpose, the US is extremely vary of risking the life of their soldiers and are willing to do just about anything to keep them out of harms way, say like completely flattening cities before moving in and such. A killer robot on rampage is no biggie.

 

Does anyone think that whatever city the robots are deployed in will get a massive insurgency increase, as rebels from surrounding towns and cities come to see/fight the spectacle of American robots invading?

I know in the U.S. any city would have every able man around, with one good arm and enough fingers to hold a rock, abusing robotic visitors, *even if they were peaceful*

 

My son may just join the Army now if he gets to drive one of these. Of course this will happen over the corpse of his mother.

 

I don't think it will have much to do with insurgency. Lots of people will come simply to watch the robots walking around. You said the word yourself: it's a spectacle not to be missed!

Aside from that, I'm 100% with Ragusa on this. The US has been proudly showing off their technical superiority in warfare for decades now. The problem is that, most of the time, the technology falls flat the moment it's used in a "real" (as opposed to "test") situation. Anyone remembers the "smart" bombs used by the US in Afghanistan? They were targeted at a Taliban HQ but instead hit a UN building halfway across the city. I don't think we'll have to wait long before seeing something similar with these new robots. If they do end up fully deploying them, that is.

Sometimes I really think the only reason these things get governmental approval for their development is so that military-industrial companies can make money. And by God do they make money...

 

I'm generally sceptic about some of the innovations in 'new' warefare. A friend of mine is in the German Army and he has participated in an OPFOR exercise against what in the US army would be the 'Land Warrior' - soldiers equipped with the latest gizmos.

He told me about how great targets glowing displays are for snipers in the night, and that a guy orienting himself on his laptop (or how about steering a robot) is blinded in night and consequently loses partial night vision and has reduced situational awareness so that they actually had to guard him with another soldier, their gear was heavy, slowing down the 'new' fighters etc.
The benefits gained were below expectations in this exercise.

There was the joke about how to best improve the situational awareness of a soldier geared up with headset and all the various displays he had to manage while fighting (and that general looking over his shoulder via the videocamera in his helmet) and someone suggested that a vibrator in the anus could signal "enemy closing in from behind"

Maybe I'm wrong and it is a splendid idea, maybe I'm right and it's pretty much useless. I can't say. I'm just very sceptic that this may be a cost effective approach considering that the Iraqis are not stupid.

 

I like the idea, though the range of a half mile is perplexing to me. That's something like 2,700 feet, less than half of a competent sniper's maximum range. If the range of the system was increased (satellite linking, or something similar) I would think that a few competent people in a command structure would be able to use the critters as an effective shock troop. It's impractical currently, though, if only because of the range restrictions.

I'd like to see this implemented, though. I hate the idea of our troops dying, especially since know almost a dozen people in the service who are deployed or who are going to be over there soon.

 

I don't see them as unusual.

I have seen many (similar units) in my lifetime but they are used to defuse bombs. I think many people would be annoyed if the Royal Irish Rangers fitted guns to ours to use against the IRA. After all Irish terrorists never harmed anyone!

 

I think the idea of the robot would be more like a 'tank' role. Just something to absorb small arms fire.

Frankly, the less humans on a battlefield the better. However, I hope nobody thinks of shoving AI on the thing, that's the only thing I worry about.

Looks like CS players might have a future in the military after all...

 

When Robots Do the Killing
A new weapon can sanitize war, and that's tragic

I don't think that robots in war will do us a favour actually.

That is the key reason why standoff weapons are inherently destabilising.

The introcuction of the airforces and the bomber as a weapon was it that enabled the forces in WW-II to kill millions in their cities from a distance without exposing the pilots and decisionmakers to the carnage. Standoff weapons were it that made WW-II so immensely costly for the civilians.

Indeed, it is easy to be ruthless from a distance.

 

Especially when all you are seeing is on the screen of a computer, and all you are doing is moving a joystick...

 

And I intended to ask if they were Two Handed or Bastard