[2ndDivisionVet]

Why are we still buying manned warplanes when this technology is well-proven and so much less costly? Unmanned aircraft risk no crew or pilots, can do the jobs that current fighters, bombers, jamming and surveillance aircraft do now, at a mere fraction of the cost!

[george76]

And these drones can hang around over the battlefield for a very long time.

[BerryDingle]

Why are we still buying manned warplanes when this technology is well-proven and so much less costly?

Because it also works great with manned aircraft pointing out targets and directing ordinance onto the target from manned aircraft after it runs out. Manned on station aircraft also have very little response time for emergency situations. As it stands right now, UAV's are a great force multiplier, not a replacement.

[antinomian]

"Why are we still buying manned warplanes when this technology is well-proven and so much less costly?"

I believe most of them are controlled via satellite. What do we do when an opponent shoots out satellites down?

[Polybius]

Why are we still buying manned warplanes when this technology is well-proven and so much less costly?

Well, as it stands right now, it is very hard to shoot down one of these

with one of these

In the future, once unmanned air superiority aircraft are developed, you must consider the consequences of having your entire air superiority capability depend on getting a guidance signal from Nintendo Air Force Base in Nevada to your thousands of unmanned aircraft in an electronic and space warfare environment.