Drone

A drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle, which is usually supervised by people on the ground. Sometimes they are programmed to a particular target.

The first drones were unmanned balloons loaded with explosives that were launched from the Austrian ship Vulcano on August 22, 1849.

The Americas first  developed drone plane technology during World War I. the Kettering Bug was one of the first unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to be developed, and it was a forerunner of present-day cruise missiles. The Bug was designed to be launched from a dolly-and-track system, similar to the method used by the Wright Brothers when they made their first powered flights in 1903. Once launched, a small onboard gyroscope guided the aircraft to its destination. The control system used a pneumatic/vacuum system, an electric system and an aneroid barometer/altimeter. To ensure the Bug hit its target, a mechanical system was devised that would track the aircraft's distance flown. Before takeoff, technicians determined the distance to be traveled relative to the air, taking into account wind speed and direction along the flight path.

During World War II, the use of drones became more advanced. In 1942, the US Navy developed a drone called the TDR-1, which was capable of carrying a 2,000-pound bomb or a torpedo and could be controlled from up to 100 miles away. The TDR-1 was used in combat during the war, and was even deployed in the Pacific theater to attack Japanese ships.

As technology continued to advance, drones became more sophisticated and capable of carrying out a wider range of missions. In recent years, drones have been used for everything from surveillance and reconnaissance to targeted airstrikes and package delivery.

Drones come in different sizes. Wingspans range from a few centimeters to about 60 meters (200 ft), the size of regular, manned aircraft.

A group photo of drones at the 2005 Naval Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Air Demo

The first passenger drone was approved for test flights in the U.S. in June 2016. The Chinese-made Ehang 184 AAV (autonomous aerial vehicle) can carry one passenger. It has no override function, so, in an emergency, the passenger cannot take control.

Rwanda uses drones from the US company Zipline to deliver urgent blood supplies to hospitals. At the destination, the drone descends to a height of 30 feet (9 meters)  to drop the payload which lands gently using a paper parachute.

Drones are banned in all US National Parks.

In 2000 the US had only 50 military drones; today it has over 7,500.