U.S. Navy Lands a Drone on an Aircraft Carrier for the First Time
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In a historic test flight, the U.S. Navy landed a drone on an aircraft carrier for the first time ever on Wednesday.
The flight involved an experimental bat-winged X-47B UAV making an arrested landing off the coast of Virginia.
Even for the most experienced pilot, landing on an aircraft carrier is a difficult operation. The unmanned X-47B was controlled almost entirely by computer.
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus said in a statement: "By evolving and integrating new technology like the X-47B and the unmanned aircraft to follow, carriers will remain relevant throughout their 50-year lifespan."
The drone, which was built by Northrop Grumman, was launched from the deck on Wednesday morning and landed on the carrier George H.W. Bush after a short flight over the Atlantic.
The Navy said that the drone completed a second successful landing on the carrier 45 minutes after the first one.
The test flight was seen as a milestone in drone technology. Combat drones are controlled remotely by a human pilot, but the X-47B is designed to carry out a combat mission controlled almost entirely by a computer.
A human pilot would design its flight path and send it on its way; a computer program would then guide it from a ship to the target and back.
