The above picture is an X-74B drone strike fighter that was unveiled by the United States Navy in fall of 2012. It is designed to be flown off of aircraft carriers and attack their targets. The X-74B is large leap forward for unmanned aerial flight. According to Discovery News and Navy officials, the remote-controlled aircraft can be flown with "...a laptop and a click of a mouse instead of a joystick and human pilot" (Eric Niller, Discovery News).
UAV effectiveness during World War One
While the more primitive drones, such as the British Queen Bee(shown right), were used as merely target practice, others could be used to destroy large battleships simply by turning it on and pointing it at the enemy. The Queen Bee was one of the first radio-controlled aerial drones to be tested.
During World War Two and the Cold War eras.
During World War II, it was suggested by Lt. Robert Jones, the Utility Squadron Five(VJ-5) commander, to use drones to "...[use] the drones as aerial rams to attack enemy fighters..."(Zaloga 07) This idea led to the Navy's Gorgon antiaircraft missile program. The Cold War also saw much drone advancement, but the focus was directed more towards guided missiles. However, the US military showed interest in turning target drones into battlefield reconnaissance drones. The first UAV of this kind was the SD-1(Surveillance Drone), which was a descendant of the Radioplane RP-71. The SD-1 was launched with rocket-assisted take-off(RATO). The SD-1 was commonly designated as AN/USD-1 and was the world's first successful surveillance UAV.
Drones uses of the future
Unmanned drones of the future are going to be smarter, faster and deadlier than ever. These drones will also be smaller and lighter for ease of access and takeoff. These newer drones will be able to literally go where no ,man has gone before.
- An example of a revolutionary drone is the Black Widow Miniature UAV(pictured left).
- The Black Widow is extremely small for an unmanned aerial vehicle.
- One of the first of its kind, it weighs a mere 50 grams and has a maximum speed of 40 miles per hour.