FIGHTER PILOTS NOT YET OBSOLETE: Predator Drones Once Shot Back at Jets… But Sucked At It. “There’s very little about their current capabilities — from their speed to their maneuverability to the range of visibility afforded to operators — that encourages operators to arm or employ them for air-to-air engagements in defended airspace.” It’s also likely, of course, that the fighter jocks who run the Air Force aren’t eager to speed the process along.