Video games finally pay off: Air Force needs more virtual flyers than real pilots

Image 2 of 2

The success of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles like the Predator means the US Air Force will, this year, train more virtual pilots than real pilots (Image: General Atomics)

Other Images from this Gallery

The extremely deadly Predator can be flown from thousands of miles away for up to 24 hours...

Article Summary

There was once a great Far Side cartoon that had ‘hopeful parents’ imagining a newspaper full of Help Wanted ads for skilled video game players. Well, it looks like Gary Larson might have been more prescient than he imagined. The US Air Force has just revealed that, this year, it will train more ‘pilots’ to remotely operate unmanned aircraft than pilots to fly fighters and bombers.

« Back to Video games finally pay off: Air Force needs more virtual flyers than real pilots

U.S. Air Force's first hunter-killer UAV named Reaper

Reaper UAV takes flight in Afghanistan

Reaper UAV to be deployed for combat

U.S Army unmanned aircraft top one million unmanned flight hours

Unmanned Aerial vehicles

Autonomous aerial refueling of UAVs demonstrated