Is this the case of radar automatic targeting unable to distinguish between a balloon and a drone. Or was this a border guy manually pulling the trigger with bad eyesight?
A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
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Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#82Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#83Thinking more practically though. Why wouldn't there be "narco drones", with drone technology becoming so ubiquitous and cheap? And what would their operators care about airspace restrictions? The practical ones, as in "not get sucked into a jet engine or damage a wing and cause a plane crash"?
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#84Earlier quoted context omitted.
Doesn't usually work. There are over a thousand incursions by unmanned aircraft systems along the U.S.-Mexico border each month, per the NORAD commander: https://www.war.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/370778... . They pretty much never result in shutting down air space or launching missiles. Responding to a single party balloon with a giant laser, thus causing a saner government official to close the airspace…
'saner govt official because moron firing giant lasers into the air' - lasers just go everywhere at once and hit everything in the air, into the stratosphere? it's a big sky and gets bigger the higher you go.
lol, this is a great imply-but-don't-make-a-point from an account called gunapologist99.
Is the implication here that someone firing laser weapons at things flying near the airport has no realistic danger for planes flying near the airport and therefore this was an overreaction?
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#85The rate of return on this is phenomenal. A 53" balloon costs $9.99. You could shut down all large and medium hubs in the US for $629.37/day. The asymmetry is astounding and I'm surprised we don't defend against this kind of attack more efficiently.
This is already a thing in Eastern Europe.
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#86More alarmingly, the laser weapon was deployed before the FAA actually shut down the airspace: https://apnews.com/article/faa-el-paso-texas-air-space-close... I'd say these trigger-happy clowns chasing tough-guy optics are going to get innocent people killed, but then they already have -- multiple times.
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Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#87Earlier quoted context omitted.
Doesn't usually work. There are over a thousand incursions by unmanned aircraft systems along the U.S.-Mexico border each month, per the NORAD commander: https://www.war.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/370778... . They pretty much never result in shutting down air space or launching missiles. Responding to a single party balloon with a giant laser, thus causing a saner government official to close the airspace…
wow maybe we should stop giving the law enforcement orgs weapons of war
All cops should have a nuke.
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#88More alarmingly, the laser weapon was deployed before the FAA actually shut down the airspace: https://apnews.com/article/faa-el-paso-texas-air-space-close... I'd say these trigger-happy clowns chasing tough-guy optics are going to get innocent people killed, but then they already have -- multiple times.
Even more alarmingly, a US cabinet secretary came out with a public statement about the incident that was a complete fabrication (labelling it a "cartel drone incursion"), has issued no retraction, and no one seems to care. (Less alarmingly but more personal: my personal prediction to this effect, expressing distrust about statements like this in real time, got flagged right here on HN because apparently our leaders…
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Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#89Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#90The rate of return on this is phenomenal. A 53" balloon costs $9.99. You could shut down all large and medium hubs in the US for $629.37/day. The asymmetry is astounding and I'm surprised we don't defend against this kind of attack more efficiently.
If it became a real issue you'd hire someone for $25/hr to patrol with an airsoft gun