Thinking 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"?
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
#122More 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…
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#123Earlier quoted context omitted.
'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
#124It was NOT the party balloon, it was the CBP's [0] massively irresponsible use of the laser weapon as a response to a threat it failed to identify properly, inside commercial airspace with zero coordination with the FAA or other air operators.
Any significant competence or even communication would have turned this into a literal non-event.
But this so-called 'administration' values only loyalty to a leader and find competence an impediment to implementing authoritarianism. So, here we are, squandering a half-billion dollars on a horde of idiots with a laser and a party balloon.
[0] https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/cbp-shot-...
[0a] "Defense Department has a working relationship with Homeland Security, where CBP is headquartered, that allows its personnel to use certain military equipment for its objectives, testing, evaluation and use along the southern border.". Seems the laser was on-loan from the DoD, and the yahoos at CBP just decided to go wild.
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#125Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#126> Who among us hasn’t, at some point, mistaken a party balloon for a cartel drone? Let him cast the first stone.
Firstly, how is the world's most powerful military afraid of "cartel drones"? Don't they already have some sci-fi laser/EW gizmos to take care of those considering how much taxpayer dollars go to the defense sector? Secondly, contrary to popular belief, cartel leaders are smart enough to know not to directly mess with and attract the wrath of the US military when that's not good for their core business.
They sent an aircraft carrier to fight "cartels". /s
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#127Earlier quoted context omitted.
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…
You didn't expect Kegsbreath to actually tell the truth?
Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#128Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#129Re: A party balloon shut down El Paso International Airport; estimated cost –$573k
#130Earlier quoted context omitted.
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…
You didn't expect Kegsbreath to actually tell the truth?