Reconnaissance

If you're conducting covert military reconnaissance, you probably don't want the enemy seeing what's obviously a drone flying overhead. That's where the Evolution Eagle is intended to come in, as it's a drone that just looks like a big ol' bird.

While AUVs (autonomous underwater vehicles) are often used for scientific studies, they're sometimes also utilized in more secretive applications, such as surveillance. A new system helps hide their location, by having them deploy a micro-AUV.

It was three years ago that we first heard about the Cleo, a robust, donut-shaped prototype drone made by Cleo Robotics. Well, its successor is now commercially available, under the new (and apt) name of the Dronut X1.

Though Parrot hasn't reached the heights of some drone companies in terms of popularity, its expertise has seen it earn a contract with the US Department of Defense to adapt its technology for military surveillance. ​

Lately we are seeing some interesting ideas around how drones can be put to work at sea, and Elbit Systems wants to be part of this conversation. Today it announced a waterproof drone based on a packable, land-based predecessor that that can be recovered and launched again within 15 minutes.​​

Fires in high-rises can be particularly deadly. With that in mind, researchers have created the flying, wall-climbing, fire-resistant FAROS quadcopter. It's designed to ascertain the source of a fire as soon as possible, along with the locations of people trapped within the building.

Warships are only as effective as far as they can see, so DARPA's Towed Airborne Lift Of Naval Systems (TALONS) research effort is aiming to extend their horizons by giving them a crow's nest 1,500 ft (457 m) tall by way of a towed parafoil.

Lockheed Martin has unveiled details of the possible successor to its Cold War era U-2 spy plane. Designated the TR-X, the improved, stealthier version of the 60-year-old design and could enter service in 10 years.

Bounce Imaging is getting ready to send 100 of its Explorer cameras to police departments across the US, in an attempt to make life safer for personnel who are often forced to jump headlong into potentially dangerous situations without a clear picture of what they'll face.

Piaggio Aerospace is determined to make its mark in the lucrative defense and security sector and the successful maiden test flight of its Prototype 001 P.1HH HammerHead UAS is an important step down that path.

The Shipboard Autonomous Firefighting Robot, as its name implies, is designed to help human crews fight fires in the close confines of naval vessels. In order to get to those fires quicker, it may ultimately receive some help itself from an autonomous drone.

A secret mission came to a public end as the US Air Force’s top secret X-37B spaceplane landed at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The unmanned reusable spacecraft touched down on the runway like a conventional aircraft this morning at 9:24 am EDT after a record-breaking 674 days in orbit.