Thursday, June 21, 2012

UK Follows America's Lead by Testing Drones in Civilian Airspace

modified unmanned Jetstream aircraft brought to you by BAE Systems

http://www.activistpost.com/2012/06/uk-follows-americas-lead-by-tes...

Early this year, the United States Congress called for the accelerated use of drones in civilian airspace.  In order to facilitate the initiative it was necessary to enlist the FAA to oversee the seamless integration. The authorization bill states:

The plan… shall provide for the safe integration of civil unmanned aircraft systems into the national airspace system as soon as practicable, but not later than September 30, 2015.

However, this plan has actually been in effect since 2010, as hundreds of FAA authorizations already have been granted within U.S. airspace. This has resulted in the quick ramp-up of drone bases and even domestic law enforcement operations on American soil.

It is no secret that America and Britain are tightly joined at the hip in all manner of surveillance and war. So, naturally, the UK has announced its own test flight of an unmanned vehicle over British soil, which will likely pave the way for a full-scale drone presence throughout the region.

Aerospace and Defense News is reporting on a modified Jetstream aircraft called "The Test Bed," which was developed by the massive multinational defense contractor BAE Systems, and is part of a much broader plan for "autonomous systems" that has been named ASTRAEA. The goal to analyze and implement "the technologies, systems, facilities, procedures and regulations that will allow autonomous vehicles to operate safely and routinely in civil airspace over the United Kingdom (emphasis added)."