Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in Iraq

Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in Iraq

February 7, 2009

An 18-year-old soldier parlayed hand-eye coordination skills he gained playing Xbox into a key asssignment with the Army's drone aircraft section, says author P.W. Singer.

Democracy Now! has posted an interview with Singer, whose latest book is Wired For War: The Robotics Revolution and Conflict in the 21st Century. Of the young gamer-soldier, Singer said:

AMY GOODMAN: The relationship with games? You write that the best pilot is an eighteen-year-old kid who trained on an [Xbox] video game...?

P.W. SINGER: Yeah. He was actually a high school dropout who wanted to join the military to make his father proud. He wanted to be a helicopter mechanic. And they said, “Well, you failed your high school English course, so you’re not qualified to be a mechanic. But would you like to be a drone pilot?” And he said, “Sure.” And it turned out, because of playing on video games, he was already good at it. He was naturally trained up. And he turned out to be so good that they brought him back from Iraq and made him an instructor in the training academy, even though he’s an enlisted man and he’s still—he was nineteen.

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Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in

You don't like where inexpensive training is going?


Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone ...

The problem is the expensive training, the inexpensive stuff is fine.  We just need more unmanned drones that explode into unrecognizable pieces when anything bad happens to them.

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Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone ...
Well i am sure his father is happy with him , he will be really relieved . ed hardy||Fred Olsen Cruises

Gavin Williams

Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in

Pretty good story there. At least it wasn't about him flying an actual manned aircraft.

 

*settles in to wait for the conspiracy theorists*

Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in

Now we just need robot soldiers... then FPS fans can fight from home!!

"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety" - Benjamin Franklin

Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone ...

Everyone would want to get closer to have a lower ping.

http://www.eliteownage.com/nice

Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in

Not that it's good he dropped out of high school or anything, but that's still a cool story. Good for him.

And I second the notion of robot soldiers controlled from a safe distance!


Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone Pilot in

isn't that because the drones are controlled by Xbox360 controllers?

岩「…Where do masochists go when they die?」

Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone ...

Then the robot soliders will just need A.I., then we're setup for Terminator to happen in real life.

Re: Young Soldier Uses Xbox Skillz to Become Ace Drone ...

That article was an excellent read, especially the parts about how the use of robotics affects our world perception and the high rate of PTSD among the remote operators.

"There is no sin except stupidity." - Oscar Wilde

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