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Extreme UAV's
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WASP is the smallest UAV in use today, weighing less than
300 grams. The miniaturization is
achieved by the use of multifunctional components, like the combined
wing/battery. WASP is nearly silent
and, when flown at night, it's almost undetectable. The Air Force has just ordered several hundred for reconnaissance
and bomb-damage assessment.
Most Famous
The MQ-1 Predator was an evolution of the earlier Gnat-750.
Originally intended purely for
reconnaissance, it was later armed with a single Hellfire missile. This combination appears to be extremely
effective at precision strikes according to the Department of Defense, which
claims a success rate of 'nearly 100 percent.' Predators are used by both the Air Force and the CIA.
Deadliest
The MQ-9 Reaper is a scaled-up version of the Predator,
larger, faster and more powerful. Reaper
was designed from the outset as a hunter-killer. It can carry up to 14 Hellfire missiles or other weapons such as
the 500-pound, laser-guided bombs shown. The 432nd Wing of the U.S. Air Force was activated to operate MQ-9
Reaper on May 1, 2007.
Widest Range
RQ-4A Global Hawk is the Air Force's endurance drone, able to cruise at around 400 mph for 35 hours. It has an operational ceiling of 65,000 feet, and from this altitude it can scan an area the size of Illinois(40,000 nautical square miles) in just 24 hours. It is equipped with radar and infrared, as well as optical sensors.
Stealthiest
The Joint Unmanned Combat Air System demonstration program,
or J-UCAS-D, is intended to be the forerunner of the next generation of
stealthy robot-strike aircraft. Its
geometry and radar-absorbent materials make it difficult to impossible to spot
on radar, as well as making it look badass.
Operating from aircraft carriers, the UCAS-D could fulfill
the Navy's goal of an aircraft that can carry a payload (such as bombs) of up
to 2,000 pounds, plus an extra 2,500 pounds externally when stealth is not
required. A typical use would be to send unmanned drones in as a first wave to
take out enemy air defenses and clear the way for manned aircraft.
Most Welcome
The CQ-10 Snow Goose is a parafoil-wing UAV for carrying medical equipment or other urgent supplies to Special Forces operating in unfriendly territory. The flexible wings are made of textile, like a parachute. The Snow Goose can be launched from the ground or from the loading ramp of a transport aircraft. Range and payload are inversely proportional; the CQ-10 can carry a 75-pound payload for 200 miles, or 500 pounds for a shorter distance depending on launch altitude and wind speed.
Most Alarming
The MIRSAD-1 drone has been flown over Israel by the
Lebanese militia group Hezbollah (mirsad means 'ambush' in Arabic). It may be armed; Hezbollah has claimed that it can be loaded with a warhead of 40
to 50 kilos (90 to 110 pounds) of explosives, turning it into a flying suicide
bomber able to reach anywhere. The Israeli Defense Force shot down two similar
drones in 2006.
Highest
HELIOS was NASA's record-breaking solar-powered flight
demonstrator. It achieved an altitude
of more than 96,000 feet -- the highest for any aircraft not powered by a rocket. A combination of solar cells and fuel cells
meant it could, in principle; stay aloft for days, weeks or even months at a
time.
The vehicle broke up in 2003 during a flight near
Hawaii when it hit turbulence, but the military is rumored to be
continuing research into solar-powered UAVs with ultra-long endurance (vehicles
capable of many hours in flight).
The Toughest
The Battlehog 150 is intended to meet the Marine Corps
requirement for a vertical takeoff drone capable of operating from aircraft
carriers. It can fly at over 300 mph
with a payload of 500 pounds, with armaments likely to include Hellfire
missiles, rocket pods and 7.62-mm mini-guns.
The Battlehog series is designed to be as robust as possible, being able
to withstand small-arms fire from close range.
The drone is steered entirely by moving the two wingtip fans, so there
are no vulnerable flight controls.
Most Modular
The Killer Bee is part UAV, part missile. It's intended to be deployed in
'constellations' of many vehicles working cooperatively. These swarms can be
used for either reconnaissance or for attack with up to 30 pounds of weapons
per drone. The Killer Bee is designed
so several can be stacked together in the cargo bay of an aircraft or in a
truck, maximizing the number that can be carried.
Most Local
The German-made Microdrone is equipped with GPS, a camera
and a loud-hailer to give instructions to those on the ground, and is currently
being tested by police in the UK. This
type of UAV is the one you're most likely to see hovering around your
neighborhood.
Its quad-rotor design is intended to make it resilient -- Microdrone can return to base with just two rotors. Law-enforcement officials hope the Microdrone can carry out some of the tasks of police helicopters, but at a fraction of the cost
Carrier Copter
The MQ-8 Fire Scout made by Northrop Grumman is operated by
the U.S. Navy and can make an automated landing on a moving aircraft
carrier. Typical missions include
surveillance, locating targets and directing fire. There have also been weapons
tests with a Firescout armed with 2.75-inch rockets. The U.S. Army has now shown interest in having its own version.
Though nine MQ-8 vehicles are in the flight-test stage, the
model is not yet operational. The Navy plans to eventually have a fleet of 168.
Future Force
The Honeywell MAV, or micro air vehicle, will be an
integral part of the U.S. Army's Future Combat System, giving reconnaissance
capability to front-line troops. The
small 'Class I' version seen here will be back-packable. It has a planned
weight of 20 pounds, and is capable of a 50-minute mission spying on locations
up to half a mile away. The vertical
takeoff and hovering capability make it well-suited to the urban canyons of the
modern battlefield.
Most versatile
The morphing micro air/land vehicle, or MMALV, is a hybrid
that can fly, then land, fold up its wings and crawl around buildings or other
tight spaces. The MMALV project is lead
by Bio Robots, in collaboration with the Biologically Inspired Robotics
Laboratory at Case Western Reserve University , the University
of Florida and the Naval Postgraduate School
Marine's Friend
Originally used for tracking schools of tuna, the Scan
Eagle drone is used by the Marine Corps in Iraq , where various versions
of the model have flown several thousand hours of missions. It has a stabilized, gimbaled camera turret
that can be fitted with either daylight or infrared imagers. No runway is required; instead it is fired
aloft by a pneumatic launcher and retrieved by a rope-and-hook arrangement
where a crane snags it out of mid-air.