Unmanned aerial systems, popularly known as drones, have been in the news for all sorts of reasons—good and bad. The media has focussed equally on them for their use in hunting down terrorists and quickly eliminating them, as also for the inadvertent killing of innocent civilians and collateral damage to private property. Infringement of sovereignty is another pertinent area of international concern. Though historically associated with military missions, drones are increasingly proving their utility for internal security and disaster management. Lately, civilian and commercial uses are also proliferating. Indeed, drones have truly become a versatile flying platform. As an aerial machine, drones have started encroaching upon the common-user air space and are striving to integrate their operations with manned military aircraft and civil airliners. The problems of air traffic management and compliance of safety measures are formidable while civil and commercial uses infringe upon personal privacy and property rights. Third-party liability is another important issue for settlement. Comprehensive regulations to handle incumbent problems are not yet in place even as drones are racing ahead in technological development and operational mandates. This book will find interested audience among managers of aviation and air space, as well as persons from the Air Forces worldwide. It will also be of relevance to practising lawyers on air litigation, scholars of air law, as well as the aware layman.

One Nation Under Drones is an interesting and informative review of how robotic and unmanned systems are impacting every aspect of American life, from how we fight our wars; to how we play; to how we grow our food. Edited by Professor John Jackson, who holds the E.A. Sperry Chair of Unmanned and Robotic Systems at the United States Naval War College, this highly readable book features chapters from a dozen experts, researchers, and operators of the sophisticated systems that have become ubiquitous across the nation and around the world. Press reports have focused primarily on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, officially designated as UAVs, but more often referred to as "drones". This book takes you behind the scenes and describes how Predators, Reapers, Scan Eagles and dozens of other pilotless aircraft have been used to fight the Global War on Terrorism. Although these systems seemed to emerge fully-developed into the skies above America's distant battlefields following the attacks of 9-11-2001, readers will discover how they actually trace their lineage to the First World War, when the "automatic airplane/aerial torpedo", designed and built by the Sperry Gyroscope Company, made its first flight just over a century ago. Unmanned aircraft were used by various combatants in World War II, and took many forms: from converted manned bombers to inter-continental attacks on the American homeland by rice-paper balloons. Technology developed in the latter decades of the 20th century enabled crews stationed thousands of miles away to attack targets on remote battlefields. Such long-range and remote-controlled weapons have been extensively used, but are controversial from both legal and ethical stand-points. Chapters written by international law specialists and drone pilots with advanced education in ethics address these issues from both sides of the argument. The book also details how robotic systems are being used on land, in and below the seas, and in civilian applications such as driverless cars. Three dozen photographs display drones as small as an insect up to those as large as a 737 airliner. One Nation Under Drones covers such a wide array of topics that it will be of interest to everyone from the casual reader seeking to know more about these systems, to national security professionals, both in and out of uniform, who will be making decisions about their procurement and use in decades to come. This work will become the definitive volume on the subject, providing the facts and avoiding the hype about systems that have moved off the pages of science fiction and into the environment all around us.

The battle between scientific temper and superstition has raged since ages. One may believe that unusual rituals and customs are extinct in the times of artificial intelligence and bots, but it is far from the truth as this book will prove. As bizarre as it might seem, in France one can marry a dead person, and in Africa a married woman can marry another married woman as a practical way of solving the social problem of old-age neglect. This book is a collection of unusual superstitions, rituals and customs that are practiced by ordinary people all around the world. It should be read to build awareness about these rituals and to know about the many shades of faith in this world we inhabit. Sacred and Profane is not a religious exposition or vindication of rituals; it aims to arouse human curiosity about such beliefs while shedding light on some important social issues.

Combat drones are transforming attitudes about the use of military force. Military casualties and the costs of conflict sap public support for war and for political and military leaders. Combat drones offer an unprecedented ability to reduce these costs by increasing accuracy, reducing the risks to civilians, and protecting military personnel from harm. These advantages should make drone strikes more popular than operations involving ground troops. Yet many critics believe drone warfare will make political leaders too willing to authorize wars, weakening constraints on the use of force. Because combat drones are relatively new, these arguments have been based on anecdotes, a handful of public opinion polls, or theoretical speculation. Drones and Support for the Use of Force uses experimental research to analyze the effects of combat drones on Americans’ support for the use of force. The authors’ findings—that drones have had important but nuanced effects on support for the use of force—have implications for democratic control of military action and civil-military relations and provide insight into how the proliferation of military technologies influences foreign policy.

The integration of drones into society has attracted unprecedented attention throughout the world. The change, for aviation, has been described as being equally as big as the arrival of the jet engine. This book examines the issues that surround this change, for our society and the legal frameworks that preserve our way of life. Drones in Society takes the uninitiated on a journey to understand the history of drones, the present day and the potential future in order to demystify the media hype. Written in an accessible style, Drones in Society will appeal to a broad range of interested readerships, among them students, safety regulators, government employees, airspace regulators, insurance brokers and underwriters, risk managers, lawyers, privacy groups and the Remotely Piloted Aircraft System (RPAS) industry generally. In a world first, this book is a light and interesting read; being both relatable and memorable while discussing complex matters of privacy, international law and the challenges ahead for us all.

The public debate over civilian use of drones is intensifying. Variously called "unmanned aircraft systems", "unmanned aerial vehicles", "remotely piloted aircraft", or simply "drones", they are available for purchase by anyone for a few hundred to a few thousand dollars. They have strikingly useful capabilities. They can carry high-definition video cameras, infrared imaging equipment, sensors for aerial surveying and mapping. They can stream their video in real time. They have GPS, inertial guidance, magnetic compasses, altimeters, and sonic ground sensors that permit them to fly a preprogrammed flightplan, take off and land autonomously, hover and orbit autonomously with the flick of a switch on the DRone Operator’s ("DROPs") console. The benefits they can confer on law enforcement, journalism, land-use planning, real estate sales, critical infrastructure protection and environmental preservation activities are obvious. However, their proliferation in response to these demands will present substantial risks to aviation safety. How to ensure the safety of drone operations perplexes aviation regulators around the world. They are inexpensive consumer products, unsuited for traditional requirements for manned aircraft costing hundreds of thousands or millions of dollars and flown only by licensed pilots who have dedicated significant parts of their lives and their wealth to obtaining licenses. Regulatory agencies in Europe and Asia are ahead of US regulators in creating spaces for commercial use. Over the next several years, legal requirements must be crystallized, existing operators of helicopter and airplanes must refine their policy positions and their business plans to take the new technologies into account, and all businesses from the smallest entrepreneur to large conglomerates must decide whether and how to use them. Domesticating Drones offers rigorous engineering, economics, legal and policy theory and doctrine on this important and far-reaching development within aviation.

The aviation industry is being transformed by the use of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones – commercially, militarily, scientifically and recreationally. National regulations have generally failed to keep pace with the expansion of the fast-growing drone industry. Aviation Law and Drones: Unmanned Aircraft and the Future of Aviation traces the development of aviation laws and regulations, explains how aviation is regulated at an international and national level, considers the interrelationship between rapidly advancing technology and legislative attempts to keep pace, and reviews existing domestic and international drone laws and issues (including safety, security, privacy and airspace issues). Against this background, the book uniquely proposes a rationale for, and key provisions of, guiding principles for the regulation of drones internationally – provisions of which could also be implemented domestically. Finally, the book examines the changing shape of our increasingly busy skies – technology beyond drones and the regulation of that technology. The world is on the edge of major disruption in aviation – drones are just the beginning. Given the almost universal interest in drones, this book will be of interest to readers worldwide, from the academic sector and beyond.

Drone Wars presents a diverse and comprehensive interdisciplinary perspective on drones and the current state of the field.

For a country that has fought five wars and is hemmed in by nuclear-armed states, India surprisingly does not have a formally declared national security strategy.All the major powers of the world publish documents that spell out their national interests, identify their threats -- political, economic, diplomatic or with regard to security -- and draw up policies to deal with them. The absence of a similar doctrine makes India's defence policy look ad hoc and creates the impression that the country is unprepared to realize its global ambitions.The New Arthashastra is a path-breaking attempt to recommend a national security strategy for India. It does the difficult groundwork for India's political leaders and policymakers by bringing the best names -- from within the community as well as from the armed forces and academia -- to the ideating table.This collection of twenty essays covers a wide range of topics: nuclear deterrence, defence spending, the domestic production of weapons, and bracing for the wars of the future that will be fought in space and cyberspace. Most important, it presents a roadmap to address India's chief concerns: Chinese assertiveness and Pakistan's unrelenting proxy war.Informed by the expertise of analysts with inside-out knowledge of their domains, The New Arthashastra offers enduring and practical insights to strategists and lay readers alike.

The Drone Debate offers a thorough investigation of the where, why, how, and when of the U.S.’s use of UAVs. Beginning with a historical overview of the use of drones in warfare, it then addresses whether targeted killing operations are strategically wise, whether they are permissible under international law, and the related ethical issues. It also looks at the political factors behind the use of drones, including domestic and global attitudes toward their use and potential issues of proliferation and escalation. Finally, the use of drones by other countries, such as Israel and China, is examined. Each chapter features a case study that highlights particular incidents and patterns of operation in specific regions, including Yemen, Somalia, Pakistan, and Libya and strike types (signature strikes, personality strikes, etc.).