Drones(Page 3)

Latest in Drones

The US embassy in Kyiv warned on November 20, 2024, of a "potential significant air attack" and shuttered its doors, following Russia's vow to respond after Ukraine fired longer-range US missiles at its territory for the first time.
News & Features

U.S. Embassy In Kyiv Temporarily Closed Due To Russian Airstrike Threat

By Howard Altman

Posted on Nov 20, 2024

Picatinny Arsenal drone sighting
Air

Army Arsenal Seeking Info On Mysterious Drone Flights Over Installation

By Howard Altman

Updated on Nov 20, 2024

A Bayraktar TB3 uncrewed aircraft has successfully landed on and taken off from the Turkish Navy’s ‘drone carrier’ TCG Anadolu.
Air

TB3 Operates From Turkey’s ‘Drone Carrier’ Amphibious Assault Ship For The First Time

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Nov 19, 2024

A unit charged with exploring how the U.S. Air Force will utilize its future Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) is now set to get actual examples of the first tranche of those drones to experiment with.
Air

Extra Collaborative Combat Aircraft Purchases To Give USAF Test Unit A Boost

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 19, 2024

F-15E Drone hunting Iranian attack
Air

F-15E Pilot Recounts Having To Switch To Guns After Missiles Ran Dry During Iranian Drone Barrage

By Howard Altman

Posted on Nov 15, 2024

The search for clues after a U.S. Air Force F-16 Viper fighter brought down a still-unidentified object over Lake Huron In February 2023 did result in the recovery of debris it has been disclosed. However, it remains unclear whether or not the wreckage was from that shootdown.
Air

Details About Search For Mystery Object Shot Down Over Lake Huron Disclosed

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 15, 2024

GREMLIN AARO
Air

Military’s UFO-Hunting Aerial Surveillance System Detailed In Report

By Howard Altman

Updated on Nov 15, 2024

The U.S. Air Force is accelerating work on low-cost air vehicles that could evolve into relatively cheap cruise missiles, and plans to scale up production of selected designs, with the help of the Pentagon's Replicator initiative.
Air

‘Cheap’ Cruise Missile Program To Speed Up With Replicator Initiative Help

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 15, 2024

Giant Uncrewed Submarine Put Forward By Chinese Shipbuilder, Possibly Linked To Existing Design
Sea

Giant Uncrewed Submarine Put Forward By Chinese Shipbuilder, Possibly Linked To Existing Design

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 14, 2024

The General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) Gray Eagle STOL drone has undertaken its first experimental operations from a warship, taking off from the deck of the South Korean amphibious assault ship Dokdo. Gray Eagle STOL — which we have discussed in depth in the past — incorporates technology first demonstrated on the company’s Mojave, which was specifically developed with the ability to perform short takeoffs and landings, including from rough fields, with minimal support. The latest development adds to the aviation-capable warships that the wider family of Q-1 lineage drones have now operated from.
Air

Gray Eagle STOL Drone Flies From South Korean Amphibious Assault Ship

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Nov 13, 2024

The W5000, the world's largest unmanned cargo plane, is shown at The 15th China International Aviation and Aerospace Exhibition in Zhuhai, China, on November 12, 2024.
Air

China’s New W5000 Cargo Drone Is The Biggest Yet

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Nov 12, 2024

KC-135 AI Copilot testing
Air

KC-135 Tanker With Artificial Intelligence Copilot Set To Fly Next Year

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 12, 2024

Clearer views of a new Chinese trimaran uncrewed surface vessel (USV) have emerged, highlighting a number of interesting low-observable (stealthy) and other features.
News & Features

China’s New Stealthy Trimaran Drone Ship: Our Best Look Yet (Updated)

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Nov 9, 2024

Russia's new S-70 flying wing uncrewed aerial vehicle (UCAV) contained dozens of foreign components, according to Ukraine.
News & Features

Russia’s S-70 Hunter Flying Wing Drone Downed In Ukraine Packed With Western Components

By Howard Altman

Posted on Nov 8, 2024

China’s mysterious CH-7 stealthy flying-wing drone seems to have reappeared, although with a notably different look to it and a very impressive size.
Air

China’s Stealth CH-7 Long-Endurance Drone Emerges

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Nov 8, 2024

The U.S. Navy recently used a drone control system now being installed on all its supercarriers to operate an actual uncrewed aircraft, a General Atomics Avenger, for the first time.
Air

MQ-20 Avenger First Drone Flown Using Navy’s Carrier-Based Control System

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 8, 2024

Massive Chinese Anti-Drone High-Power Microwave Weapon Emerges
Land

Massive Chinese Anti-Drone High-Power Microwave Weapon Emerges

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 7, 2024

Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works advanced projects division has put forward a new vision for a stealthy pilot-optional aerial refueling tanker.
Air

Skunk Works’ Latest Stealthy Tanker Concept Revealed

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 7, 2024

Ukraine struck a Russian Caspian Sea military port for the first time.
News & Features

Ukraine Hits Caspian Sea Port For The First Time

By Howard Altman

Posted on Nov 6, 2024

A new large jet-powered Chinese armed drone said to have a 10-ton maximum takeoff weight, or a mockup thereof, has emerged, and the design looks to be at least configurable to be a swarm mothership.
Air

New Heavyweight Chinese Jet Drone Looks To Be A Swarm Mothership

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 6, 2024

The future outlook for the U.S. Air Force's top modernization efforts is even more uncertain after the service's civilian boss openly questioned the affordability of buying any combination of new stealth 'fighters,' advanced aerial refueling tankers, and highly autonomous drones.
Air

Crisis Brewing Over Air Force’s Future Air Dominance Plans Which It Cannot Afford

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Nov 6, 2024

Russia has launched a record number of Shahed drones at Ukraine.
News & Features

Russia Firing Record Number Of Shahed-136s At Ukraine

By Howard Altman

Posted on Nov 5, 2024

The Army has racked up 170 kills with Coyote counter-drone interceptors in operational deployments globally.
Land

Army Coyote Drone Hunting Drones Have Scored 170 Combat Kills

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman

Posted on Nov 1, 2024

Lasers, Microwaves, Missiles, Guns Not On The Table For Domestic Drone Defense
Land

Lasers, Microwaves, Missiles, Guns Not On The Table For Domestic Drone Defense

By Joseph Trevithick, Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Oct 31, 2024

The commander of NORAD and NORTHCOM talked about the Langley Air Force Base drone incursion and what the military could do about it.
Air

Here’s What NORAD’s Commander Just Told Us About The Langley AFB Drone Incursions

By Howard Altman

Posted on Oct 30, 2024

The Kremlin-appointed Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov has vowed to avenge a Ukrainian drone attack that struck a military training facility in Chechnya. The raid, which appears to be the first of its kind to hit the southern Russian republic, is one of the longest-range drone strikes that Ukraine has attempted. The target was special forces training center, but the attack also has significant symbolic value, due to Kadyrov’s vocal support for the Russian war in Ukraine.
News & Features

Ukraine Strikes Chechnya With Long-Range Drones For The First Time

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Oct 29, 2024

B-21 Taking On Some Of NGAD Fighter’s Missions On The Table Air Force Says
Air

B-21 Taking On Some Of NGAD Fighter’s Missions On The Table Air Force Says

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 26, 2024

We have now gotten our first look at the Ghost Shark extra-large autonomous undersea vehicle (XL-AUV) underwater thanks to the Autonomous Warrior 2024 maritime autonomous capabilities demonstration in Australia.
Sea

Our First Look At The Ghost Shark Uncrewed Submarine Underwater

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 25, 2024

The existence of a top-secret Israeli drone, referred to as RA-01 and used for covert missions, has emerged from an unauthorized disclosure of U.S. intelligence documents which have now been posted all over social media.
Air

The Existence Of Israel’s Secret Stealth Drone Should Come As No Surprise

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 22, 2024

Smarter MQ-1C Gray Eagle Is Getting Mojave’s Short Field Capabilities
Air

Smarter MQ-1C Gray Eagle Is Getting Mojave’s Short Field Capabilities

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Oct 21, 2024

The secretive Phoenix Ghost kamikaze drone developed by the U.S. Air Force to support Ukraine in its ongoing fight against Russia, has finally emerged from the shadows.
Air

Secretive Phoenix Ghost Kamikaze Drones Rushed To Ukraine Finally Come Out Of The Shadows

By Thomas Newdick, Rachel S. Cohen, Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 17, 2024

General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) has unveiled a new Mission Command On The Move (MCOTM) concept and its supporting hardware centered on a hybrid-electric Stryker-based vehicle.
Land

Command Center Stryker Teamed With Uncrewed Ground Vehicle ‘Wingmen’ A Sign Of Things To Come

By Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Oct 17, 2024

P550 aerovironment drone can fly 5 hours on a single charge.
Air

Aerovironment’s New P550 Flies Five Hours On A Charge, Drops Two-Pound Guided Bombs

By Rachel S. Cohen

Posted on Oct 16, 2024

Shield AI Firejet artwork

Shield AI Looks To Unleash Its Hivemind Autonomy Software On Multiple Platforms

By Jamie Hunter

Updated on Oct 16, 2024

China has revealed a new tiltrotor drone concept, the Zhang Ying UR6000, that has clear military potential, despite initially being pitched for civilian missions.
Air

China’s Large Tiltrotor Drone Breaks Cover

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Oct 15, 2024

A new miniature electronic warfare jammer that is small and relatively low-cost enough to be a payload on loyal wingman-type drones and even expandable loitering munitions has hit the market from defense contractor Leonardo.
Air

BriteStorm Miniature Electronic Warfare System Can Allow Small Drones To Create Big Ghost Formations

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 14, 2024

Experimental Fly-By-Wire UH-60M Black Hawk To Become Autonomy Testbed
Air

Experimental Fly-By-Wire UH-60M Black Hawk To Become Autonomy Testbed

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 14, 2024

North Korea accused South Korea on Friday of sending drones to scatter a "huge number" of anti-North leaflets over its capital Pyongyang, in what it called a political and military provocation that could lead to armed conflict.
Air

Drones Penetrate North Korean Air Defenses To Drop Propaganda Leaflets On Pyongyang

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Oct 11, 2024

Bolt-M drone
Air

Bolt-M Aims To Make Kamikaze Drone Attacks More User Friendly, Effective

By Thomas Newdick, Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Oct 10, 2024

U.S. Air Force officials at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia are looking at installing anti-drone nets to help protect F-22 Raptor stealth fighters on the flightline.
Air

Protective Nets To Shield F-22s Eyed For Airbase Swarmed By Mystery Drones

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Oct 9, 2024

Aurora Flight Sciences has released new renderings of an uncrewed fan-in-wing vertical take-off-and-landing capable demonstrator aircraft it is currently working on, as well as of a revised vision for a scaled-up stealthy cargo aircraft based on the same technology.
Air

New Vision For Lift Fan Aircraft Family Grows From Special Operations X-Plane Program

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 9, 2024

Roadrunner Anduril
Air

Anduril’s Roadrunner Drone Hunting Drone Gets Expanded Order From Pentagon

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Oct 8, 2024

Israeli defense contractor Rafael says it has developed a new version of its combat-proven Trophy active protection system (APS) that is better able to defeat top-down attacks including drones.
Land

Trophy Armored Vehicle Protection System Gains New Ability To Defeat Drones

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 8, 2024

Iran looks to have fielded a Chinese laser directed energy weapon capable of 'dazzling' drones or even destroying them in certain circumstances.
Land

Chinese Laser Anti-Drone System Spotted In Iran

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Oct 8, 2024

KOSTYANTYNIVKA, UKRAINE - OCTOBER 5: Ukrainian servicemen examine the wreckage of a downed Russian aircraft, likely a Sukhoi S-70 "stealth" heavy unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV), which crashed in a residential area, setting a house on fire on October 5, 2024 in Kostyantynivka, Ukraine.
Air

Russia’s S-70 Hunter Drone Was Armed When Shot Down By Friendly Fighter Over Ukraine

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Oct 7, 2024

S-70 Hunter Drone shot down over Ukraine by SU-57
Air

Why Did Russia Just Shoot Down Its Own Fighter-Sized S-70 Hunter Drone Over Ukraine?

By Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Oct 5, 2024

Ukraine is now using dragon drones to attack Russian bunkers and tanks.
News & Features

Ukraine Now Using Dragon Drones To Burn Russian Bunkers, Tanks

By Howard Altman

Posted on Oct 5, 2024

AH64 firing hellfire at drone
Air

AH-64 Apaches Practice Shooting Down Drones With Hellfire Missiles In Saudi Arabia

By Tyler Rogoway

Updated on Oct 3, 2024

Russia is training on using helicopters to launch FPV drones to attack Ukrainian sea drones.
News & Features

Russia Training To Launch FPV Drones From Helicopters To Counter Sea Drones

By Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Sep 30, 2024

The U.S. Marine Corps says it has demonstrated new capabilities for operating future drones with high degrees of autonomy in expeditionary operations with another test flight of one of its stealthy XQ-58 Valkyries.
Air

Third Marine XQ-58 Valkyrie Flight Test Uses Link 16 For Control

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 26, 2024

The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is looking to explore concepts for a new drone capable of lugging around up to 70,000 pounds of cargo, roughly twice what the U.S. Marine Corps' CH-53K King Stallion helicopter can lift.
Air

Search For Cargo Drone That Can Lift Twice As Much As A CH-53K King Stallion Kicks Off

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 25, 2024

Dutch missile ship
Sea

New Dutch Navy Support Vessels Will Be Missile-Toting Wingmen To Frigates

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Sep 25, 2024

The U.S. Air Force is interested in adding an active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar to its X-62A test jet. The radar is part of larger plans to acquire a new modular sensor suite for the uniquely modified F-16 specifically to help expand its ability to support advanced autonomy developments.
Air

New Radar Sought To Help X-62A Test Jet Take Next Leap In Autonomy Testing

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 24, 2024

Satellite Images Show Massive Devastation At Russian Ammo Storage Sites Struck By Ukrainian Drones
News & Features

Satellite Images Show Massive Devastation At Russian Ammo Storage Sites Struck By Ukrainian Drones

By Howard Altman

Updated on Sep 24, 2024

Tu-143 Hezbollah
News & Features

Hezbollah Converted Soviet Tu-143 Jet Recon Drone Into Cruise Missile Says IDF, Just Like Ukraine

By Howard Altman, Tyler Rogoway

Posted on Sep 23, 2024

Collins Aerospace has put forward a vision for what a high-end air combat engagement between the U.S. and Chinese armed forces, with the American side employing crewed fighters and Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drone wingmen, could look like in the future.
Air

What American Fighters And Their Drone Wingmen Fighting Chinese Jets Might Look Like

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 20, 2024

The U.S. Air Force says the once-secretive Off-Board Sensing Station (OBSS) drone program has been fully folded into the service's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) effort. General Atomics has already disclosed that its current CCA design is derived from the XQ-67 drone it developed for OBSS.
Air

Collaborative Combat Aircraft Program ‘Ingesting’ Modular Chassis Concept Pioneered By XQ-67 Drone

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Sep 20, 2024

The U.S. Air Force is pushing ahead with experimentation that could lead to the transformation of KC-135 tankers into optionally crewed aircraft, as well as the development of other autonomous aerial refueling capabilities. U.S. military interest in autonomous airlifters, an area where China has been notably surging forward in the past few years, is also growing.
Air

Work Toward KC-135 Tankers That Fly Themselves, Uncrewed Cargo Aircraft Pressing Ahead

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 18, 2024

A huge explosion has rocked the Tver region, in the west of Russia, with initial reports indicating that Ukrainian long-range attack drones targeted an ammunition depot there. Videos and pictures on social media from the scene show an initial explosion, with a very large fireball, followed by a significant visible shockwave, then several minutes’ worth of secondary explosions illuminating the night sky.
News & Features

Massive Russian Weapons Depot Still Burning After Ukrainian Drone Attack

By Thomas Newdick

Posted on Sep 18, 2024

Lockheed Martin's losing entry in the first increment of the U.S. Air Force's Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drone program was a very stealthy design, the head of the famed Skunk Works advanced projects division has disclosed. The company is now expecting future CCA increments to revolve around proposals that might lean closer to not just being lower-cost, but maybe even expendable, to support a concept of operations that requires tolerance for very high losses.
Air

Skunk Works’ Losing Loyal Wingman Drone Was Very Stealthy “Gold Plated” Design

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 18, 2024

General Atomics CCA
Air

General Atomics Says Its Collaborative Combat Aircraft Is Like A Bic Lighter

By Tyler Rogoway, Jamie Hunter

Posted on Sep 17, 2024

The U.S. Air Force has no plans to acquire stealthy uncrewed combat air vehicles (UCAV) capable of operating with very high degrees of autonomy independently of crewed aircraft, at least in the near term publicly, despite surging Chinese developments in this domain.
Air

No Flying Wing UCAVs Being Developed By U.S. Air Force While China Surges Ahead

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 17, 2024

The U.S. Air Force's still evolving requirements for a next-generation aerial refueling 'system of systems' will directly impact the service's reassessment of plans for a new sixth-generation stealth 'fighter.' The Next-Generation Air-Refueling System (NGAS) effort will also inform work on a second tranche of Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones.
Air

Future Stealth Tanker Plans Tied To NGAD 6th Generation Fighter’s Fate

By Joseph Trevithick

Posted on Sep 16, 2024

Russia putting tires on top of bombers and other aircraft was about confusing seekers with image-matching capability on incoming munitions, a senior U.S. military technologist has confirmed.
Air

Russia Covering Aircraft With Tires Is About Confusing Image-Matching Missile Seekers U.S. Military Confirms

By Joseph Trevithick

Updated on Sep 13, 2024