Military drones soar above world’s battlefields
As drone technology becomes more advanced, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) will increasingly be used to perform a wide range of critical missions in which manned flights are dangerous or impractical, according to experts at IDEX.
A wide range of UAVs are on display at IDEX, ranging from small, man-portable, rotary-wing variants designed to be carried by on-the-ground tactical units, to larger, weaponised versions that currently patrol and carry out frequent strikes in Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and other active combat zones.
Among the companies displaying drones at IDEX is Insitu, a Boeing subsidiary which produces light-weight UAV’s, one of which, the ScanEagle has the ability to fly unnoticed over targets for up to 24 hours at altitudes at almost 6,000 metres, depending on payloads.
Since first seeing active service over the skies of Iraq in 2004, ScanEagles have accumulated almost a million flight hours, many of them over active battlefields worldwide.
Source: Military drones soar above world’s battlefields
