US Navy drone puts live-fire missile test on target

In a taste of things to come, an unmanned MQ-8B Fire Scout has provided tracking data for a Harpoon Block 1C missile fired from the Littoral Combat Ship USS Coronado (LCS 4), helping it reach its target a “significant distance” over the ship’s visual horizon. The live-fire exercise took place on August 22 off the coast of Guam during which the drone rotorcraft worked in conjunction with an MH-60S Seahawk helicopter.

As drones and other robotic devices become more capable and numerous, the part they play in the armed forces becomes more significant. Already fifth-generation fighter aircraft like the F-35 Lightning II are seen less as direct combatants than as command and control platforms, and even manned submarines may one day be relegated to coordinating drone fleets of underwater warriors.