drones 无人机

President Barack Obama has confirmed the US is using unmanned aircraft to target suspected militants in tribal areas of Pakistan. He defended the drone attacks， saying they made precision strikes and were kept on a “tight leash1”.

What are drones used for and how are they controlled？

To the military， they are UAVs （Unmanned Aerial Vehicles） or RPAS （Remotely Piloted Aerial Systems）. However， they are more commonly known as drones.

Drones are used in situations where manned flight is considered too risky or difficult. They provide troops with a 24-hour “eye in the sky”， seven days a week. Each aircraft can stay aloft2 for up to 17 hours at a time， loitering3 over an area and sending back real-time imagery of activities on the ground.

Those used by the United States Air Force and Royal Air Force range from small intelligence， surveillance and reconnaissance craft， some light enough to be launched by hand， to medium-sized armed drones and large spy planes.

[ Key Uses：

Intelligence， surveillance4， reconnaissance5

Checking for roadside bombs or devices on landing areas

Listening to mobile phone conversations

Helping understand daily routine of locals to see what is normal behavior

Close Air Support

Following or attacking suspected insurgents6]

Although the US does not routinely speak publicly about operations involving drones， President Obama has confirmed that they regularly strike suspected militants in Pakistan’s tribal areas.

The use of such unmanned aircraft in the area began under President George W. Bush， but their use has more than doubled under the Obama administration.

Drones are seen by many in the military as delivering precision strikes without the need for more intrusive7 military action. However， they are not without controversy.

Hundreds of people have been killed by the strikes in Pakistan―civilians as well as militants， causing outrage. One of the deadliest attacks was in March 2011 when 40 were killed， many believed to be civilians at a tribal meeting.

奥巴马总统确认：美国正使用无人机来锁定巴基斯坦部落可疑的激进分子。他为无人机攻击事件辩护。奥巴马说：无人机打击精确，并处于“严格的控制”中。

什么是无人机呢？它们如何受控？

在军事上，它们被称为“无人航空器”或“遥控飞航系统”，但更多情况下它们被称为无人机。

无人机用在人工飞行太危险或太困难的地区。他们给军队提供24小时的“天空之眼”，一周7天。每个飞行器一次能在天上飞17个小时，徘徊在一个区域，送回地面活动的实时图像。

美国空军和英国皇家空军使用的无人机包括小型情报监视侦查器（有些轻到能用手发射）、中型武装无人机和大型间谍无人机。

主要用途：

情报收集、监视和侦查

检查路边炸弹或者着陆区的爆炸装置

窃听手机通话

协助了解当地日常生活规律，来判断行为是否异常

近距离空中支援

跟踪或者攻击可疑的叛乱分子]

尽管美国例行会上不公开谈论涉及无人机的行动，但奥巴马总统已经确认：无人机时常打击巴基斯坦部落区可疑的激进分子。

在此地区使用这样的无人机始于乔治・W・布什总统在任期间，但在奥巴马政府中，无人机的使用增加了两倍多。

军方很多人认为在没有必要有介入性军事行动的时候，无人机可用来实施精确打击。然而，它们并非毫无争议。

数以百计的巴基斯坦人被无人机打死――不但有军人也有平民，这引发了众怒。伤亡最惨重的一起攻击事件在2011年4月，40人被打死，据悉，很多死者是在参加部落会议的平民。