Sure, the Pentagon's latest and greatest drones were there. But Gulf War II also saw the remergence of an unmanned plane that got its start nearly four decades ago, Defense Tech pal CW notes.
"Vietnam-era Firebee drones [flew] over Baghdad to drop radar-jamming chaff and, until they ran out of fuel, to circle the city as decoys to draw anti-aircraft fire away from coalition strike aircraft."
Jim Pinkerton described the drone last year in the Houston Chronicle:
Called the "Ryan Firebee" after its inventor, the drone is 23 feet long with a wingspan of 12 feet. A J-2 jet engine, the same type used in small trainers, powers the Firebee, giving it a range of more than 300 miles. According to the crew, the five drones are the only ones of their kind in the Air Force's inventory..... Each drone... was programmed to fly to Baghdad, on to Tikrit -- Saddam's hometown and his power base -- then back to Baghdad, making multiple passes over the Iraqi capital.
