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Comment and Technology

Drone pilots deserve medals even without risking their lives

By David Hambling

22 September 2017

�鶹��ý. Science news and long reads from expert journalists, covering developments in science, technology, health and the environment on the website and the magazine. — Drone operators see the gory results of their missile strikes close up
John Moore/Getty

Do military drone operators deserve medals for controlling remote aircraft over battlefields thousands of miles away? UK – a controversial suggestion that will spark heated debate. That debate is rooted in an age-old argument about technology in warfare.

The US has already batted this issue around. Three years ago, defence secretary Chuck Hagel , which would have been awarded to uncrewed aircraft and cyber warfare operatives. The American Legion, a veterans’…

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