Saudi Arabia Joins The Killer Drone Arms Race -- The Verge
Last week, Saudi Arabia bought its first drone fleet, according to a dispatch from Tactical Reports. Saudi Crown Prince Salman met with Chinese General Wang Guanzhong to sign a contract for a shipment of Chinese Wing Loong drones, also known as Pterodactyls. The drones that make up the shipment are designed to mimic America's Predator drone, with surveillance capabilities and enough lift to carry two matched air-to-ground missiles.
If the report is true, it means Saudi Arabia may have joined an exclusive club, one of the few nations with armed, unmanned aircraft. It's a group that, to date, includes just the US, Britain, Israel, China, and (depending who you ask) Iran — but beyond those countries, the capability is increasingly available to whoever can pay for it. At the Singapore Air Show earlier this year, both Israel and China were showing off their wares to would-be clients, including the Pterodactyl drone named in the report, and you could find similar displays at dozens of other air shows. With American counterterrorism efforts providing an ongoing test of how valuable the machines can be, there are lots of countries willing to buy.
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My Comment: We know that they have the bases to house such a fleet .... so why not their own drones. As to why is Saudi Arabia buying these drones now .... I suspect that the Saudis want to use these drones to target al Qaeda targets in other countries .... starting with Yemen.
And they've just recently paraded mobile ballistic missiles nuke capable with a senior Pakistani military figure on the reviewing stand.
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