Hunting feral pigs by RC plane !
 

Hi Foodstick ,

I saw your link and I can say that I have no problem with a farmer doing WHATEVER it takes to protect his crops ! Furthermore , if the Farmer feels this is the moist cost effective way to eradicate a crop pest that destroys Thou$and$ of dollars of crops nightly , well then God bless him some more . My wonder here is , how many are gonna respond to your thread title only , rather than the the story within . Sure , if they were chasin down poor defenseless animals for nothing but kicks , I may take a different view , but these Men are attempting to protect their crops and thus their own financial future .

;) Anyone for Barbecued pork ribs ???

I was just shocked its going on.. I have no problems with wiping out feral hogs, I would be hunting them the traditional way if they were around here...

:) Hi Foodstick ,

It's funny , as I was reading the story my mind wandered a bit and I got to wondering what these poor Farmers must have gone through before they found RC hunting as the most effective way to eradicate these pests . For sure a feral pig is no small cute furry critter and it would likely take a sizable leg trap to catch one . Of course , any trap large enough to catch a wild pig is also plenty large enough to catch the Farmer's dogs , and maybe some livestock if he's got any . Other , non targeted wild species (Deer and such) would be at risk as well . With this method , ONLY the pest to be eliminated is hurt , and the rest of nature gets to go on being nature . So traps of any kind are out , surely couldn't use poison , and so this gives them a perfectly targeted hit on the problem .

Edited to add ;

For anyone who doesn't read the story , rest assured that they are NOT shooting the hogs FROM the RC . The RC carries a thermal imaging camera which finds the prey , and then a "traditional" hunter on the ground moves in for the kill . A small distinction , I know , but one I felt was worth noting to this story ;)

Who says hunting the destructive split-hoof, large fanged vermin by Drone isn't the 'New Traditional'? After all, once upon a time not so long ago, using a 'telescopic sight device', i.e. a 'scope', was looked at as non-traditional, and also as an 'unfair' advantage sure to wipe out all known deer populations. Like this drone technology, I think its going to lead to some pretty cool inventions/technology, though always, and I mean ALWAYS count on the Idiot Syndrome, whereas someone will always use the good stuff in life for the selfish bad... Like Init4fun said, setting traps in the 'blind' meant you caught anything that happened to walk into the trap. Personally, I am highly impressed with people that use their God given noggin parts to think this kind of stuff up! After all, if the US Government had invented this thing, it would not only still be 'in development', but cost more than all our home's values put together... Now, the real reason I wrote was to get the Thread headed in the right direction, and that is, just WHAT plane is the guy using for his 'Drone'? And if no one knows, what would all ya'll think would make the best/safest plane to haul your $10,000 Thermal Imaging device around on? Through the years, and since I fly off my own country grass strip, I have always had a Hobbico Hobbistar ARF (#3 currently) in my hanger, modified with large flaps and tail-dragger configuration with a 1.20 4 stroke that I feel safe mounting everything from my best set of floats to an expensive camera, so what say you guys?

Would recoil be a problem?:)

Hi Widget ,

I think your on the right track with any of the more stable , high wing trainer type RCs as a camera platform . If a Hobbistar is the same as a Nextstar , which is a Hobbico plane I'm familiar with , it would serve nicely . Slow , stable , easy to fly , and able to lift a bit of extra electronics are the biggest requirements . Nothing low wing , very maneuverable , or very pretty should be considered . Remember , just about ALL "purpose built" craft look odd as form gives way to function ....

Now, tell me, is "Form gives way to function" just another euphemism for "Necessity is the Mother Of Invention"??? (-: This is terrible, but my being part Cherokee is coming out with my "Injun-nuity"... hehe* But seriously, you hit the nail on the head, and yes, I think the Nexstar is slightly smaller and is a higher lift wing form with the little du-dads that poke out of the LE. Like I said, I fly off my own current dirt, but soon to be (Springtime) all grass strip, so nothing low wing, all TD, though I do have a few mid-wings that are TD also. On that thought, a crossbow and live-camera mounted on the 1.20 AX powered Revolver 70 might be a good platform, and if nothing else, sharpen up the spinner up just in case I miss with the bow and Kamikaze the feral pigs? No? I didn't think so.... Just kidding anyway.. No, no... REALLY!!! (-: On the high-lift stable platform thing, I have a left-over Hobbistar wing, with flaps, that I am going to pursue making a foam fuse with graphite strengtheners, super light, high lift etc etc and strong enough to carry stuff. First cargo is going to be GI Joes on parachutes for my grand boys, stuff like that. It won't have the appeal of a P-51, but again, like you said, "form gives way to function." I like it...!

Anything that takes these 200 pound rats out of the ecosystem is a good thing. You can go and kill 500 of them in an area and they'll bounce back in 6 months. They breed like rabbits, fight like dogs, and eat like, well, pigs.