The Brits are making what sound like an eminently reasonable request (demand) regarding a major defense purchase from the US.
The UK has warned America that it will cancel its £12bn order for the Joint Strike Fighter if the US does not hand over full access to the computer software code that controls the jets.
Lord Drayson, minister for defence procurement, told the The Daily Telegraph that the planes were useless without control of the software as they could effectively be “switched off” by the Americans without warning.
It’s not a matter of trust per se — but were I Britain, I’d certainly be uncomfortable at the idea that the US (or anyone else) could ground my jet fighters through some sort of back door were they to disagree with my use of them. Heck, if such a back door exists, it would be highly dangerous to the US (since secrets like that tend to get out sooner or later). Very Tom Clancyesque.
(via BoingBoing)
I have always wondered why, when we sell shoulder-fired missiles and such, they don’t periodically validate themselves by a satellite signal or something like that. A lot of US planes have been shot down by US stingers.
The problem with distributing technology of that sort is that it would lend itself far too easily to being found, cracked, defeated or (worse) taken over.