US Navy Installs Linux for Drone Control

[Evil_Bert]

The US Navy has signed off on a $28m contract from military contractor Raytheon to install Linux ground control software for its fleet of vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drones.

Read the rest here.

[angryfirelord]

I'm sorry, but you'll have to refer to them as GNU/Unmanned Aerial Vehicles.

[billybob linux]

Interesting article:

While the US military has been a growing user of Linux, the contract might also have something to do with the swabbies learning from the mistakes made by the flyboys and girls in the US Air Force. After a malware attack on the Air Force's Windows-based drone-control system last year, there has been a wholesale move to Linux for security reasons.

Good news for Linux when the US military gets interested.

[Dan]

... And conversely, bad news for us. The higher linux is on the bad guy's radar, (and trust that there are exploitive ID-10-Ts on both sides ... and in the middle of these sorts of things.) the sooner we all have to start worrying about the same kind of anti-virus, anti-malware crud our Windows-using friends have been dealing with for years.

[billybob linux]

Ah yes. never thought about the downside I just saw the dollar sign at the beginning of the article followed by some serious numbers and thought it might be a good thing. Ah...it must be the scotsman in me, sometimes I can't help myself

[deanej]

Something tells me that a large portion of the malware that Windows users currently have to deal with will be stopped by selinux.

The distros might have to change their release/support cycles though. Only supporting a version for a year or two won't fly any more.

[jpollard]

In addition, it is possible to configure SELinux such that there is no all powerful root account.

This blocks most of the ID10T problems in their chairs.

In many cases, you can't update things like the navigation control station in the field - you get a new disk with it pre-installed, pre-configured, and ready to go as soon as it is plugged in.

Those that do allow field updates are closer to the "boot the install CD" and it basically copies a new ISO to the local disk.

[BBQdave]

Originally Posted by billybob linux

Good news for Linux when the US military gets interested.

I believe Yellowdog has held military (Navy) contracts for a good while now.

http://www.techedgeezine.com/080903xservers_linux.htm

Not sure though, if the Navy is still hanging with YDL and PowerPC?

[stevea]

So if Iran catches another one can they demand a copy of the source code ?

My tolerance for assassination tools used to incur into nations we are not at war with is low. These ~2000 drone killings are nothing but a justification to terrorists and less technological states to use horrific terrorism against us and then rightly claim they are just following our lead. Then we have the terrible precedent of these assassination attacks being controlled in an unchecked and incontestable way within our government.

Wot a world wot a world.

Originally Posted by stevea

So if Iran catches another one can they demand a copy of the source code ?

My tolerance for assassination tools used to incur into nations we are not at war with is low. These ~2000 drone killings are nothing but a justification to terrorists and less technological states to use horrific terrorism against us and then rightly claim they are just following our lead. Then we have the terrible precedent of these assassination attacks being controlled in an unchecked and incontestable way within our government.

Wot a world wot a world.

America shouldn't use them to terrorise other nations, by using them they are no better than terrorists they are trying to kill/murder (even terrorists deserve a trial by jury/court then firing squad).

[sonoran]

Originally Posted by Yellowman

America shouldn't use them to terrorise other nations, by using them they are no better than terrorists they are trying to kill/murder (even terrorists deserve a trial by jury/court then firing squad).

Countries that harbor terrorists should expect to be terrorized. Equating drone strikes with suicide bombers is absurd. If terrorists want a trial then they should surrender.

Originally Posted by sonoran

Countries that harbor terrorists should expect to be terrorized. Equating drone strikes with suicide bombers is absurd. If terrorists want a trial then they should surrender.

In the past America has harboured IRA terrorists, does this give the UK the right to send in drones to kill them and cause collateral damage to innocent civilians?

[sonoran]

Originally Posted by Yellowman

In the past America has harboured IRA terrorists, does this give the UK the right to send in drones to kill them and cause collateral damage to innocent civilians?

Certainly. I wonder why they didn't.

This all depends on your definition of "harboring." International law provides for extradition of criminals. If Pakistan would arrest and extradite the terrorists inside their borders I'm sure the drone strikes would stop.

[Dan]

... exactly which part of this discussion do we think hasn't become political?! <....>

Thread closed.



EDIT: That being said and done, I think this discussion has merit and am curious about what folks have to say. So ...

http://forums.fedoraforum.org/group....4#gmessage2414