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Tracking and killing insurgents? There's an app for that.

The Guardian has a story on US military contractor Raytheon who's begun building a series of applications for the iPhone for use in the battlefield. Their first military app is called One Force Tracker and uses satellite positioning and mobile networks to turn soldiers into master tacticians, giving them constantly updating field maps that track the position of friendly troops and enemy fighters in real time.

Jay Smart, chief technology officer of Raytheon's intelligence and information systems business, said, "Raytheon's experience with mobile communications in the tactical environment and the government customers' need for low-power, simple plug-and-play applications led to the development of a real-time situational awareness application using Apple's touch technologies," and that the decision to use the iPhone was "because building software for the gadget was cheaper and simpler than some of the expensive options specifically designed for military use."
While it's probably a safe bet that One Force Tracker won't be appearing in the App Store anytime soon, another military application by Knight's Armament Company, an American weapons maker that supplies rifles to the Pentagon, has an app called BulletFlight [iTunes link] which helps snipers and sharpshooters to hit their intended target.

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The Guardian has a story on US military contractor Raytheon who's begun building a series of applications for the iPhone for use in the...
 

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Isac

I know right!

December 27 2009 at 10:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
nintendo fanboy hater

this app must be $999.99 for 10 licenses.

December 18 2009 at 1:55 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Mike

Maybe this will create a balance against the iPhone app insurgents already have to view live predator drone footage. They would use it anywhere, but AT&T limited use to wifi

December 18 2009 at 1:49 AM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Mccreations

You probably will never see it in the app store because they're designing it on "modified versions of the iPhone's OS" (aka jailbreak).

Maybe in the Cydia store ;)?

December 17 2009 at 6:04 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
artifex

Is the cellular or wi-fi infrastructure in place in a combat zone, and is it well-protected from jamming or being blown up? If not, and these are unmodified phones relying on commercial-grade networks, would you really bet your life on this app?

December 17 2009 at 5:49 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
Forrest

I love so much that this article's image shows "cingular" as iPhone's carrier

December 17 2009 at 5:22 PM Report abuse rate up rate down Reply
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