You can save a lot of weight, iterate faster, undertake missions without concern for return, make big wins in the aerodynamic department, get improved situational awareness with strategically sited cameras, and more.
Of course, if someone can interfere with or hack your link with the aircraft, you're hosed. If they can turn it around and attack you with it, it's even worse.
That, and the Blue Angels will be far less romantic when there's nobody at the helm of each finely-tuned airbreathing rocket.
Things change.
(Modern air-to-air missiles are $0.4-1.2M [1,2]. Modern war is expensive; we trade consuming lives at war for consuming economic output at home.)
Of course, if someone can interfere with or hack your link with the aircraft, you're hosed. If they can turn it around and attack you with it, it's even worse.
That, and the Blue Angels will be far less romantic when there's nobody at the helm of each finely-tuned airbreathing rocket.
Things change.
(Modern air-to-air missiles are $0.4-1.2M [1,2]. Modern war is expensive; we trade consuming lives at war for consuming economic output at home.)
[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIM-9_Sidewinder
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIM-120_AMRAAM