But unmanned aircraft cannot replace manned transports, the former Israeli air chief insisted. “I don’t see human beings being transported by unmanned vehicles.”
While unmanned systems offer considerable savings in acquisition, life-cycle and training costs, they lack deterrent power.
“UAVs will not contribute enough to deterrence to prevent war,” he said.
“When the F-35 is operational in Israel, it will have a dramatic effect on deterring our enemies. ... So even if we have hundreds of UAVs, it won’t impact the balance of power as much as a single squadron of F-35s.”
The former air chief also said UAVs are highly dependent on networked command and control, which renders them more vulnerable to cyber attack than manned fighters, “which know how to perform their mission in total silence.”
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