The idea of using drones for delivery isn’t new, but the US Marines are testing out the idea of using delivery drones that are also disposable, meaning that they can be thrown away after use. In fact more recently the US Marines have successfully tested the idea of using disposable drones which means that it could actually become a part of their operations.
Developed by the scientists at Logistic Gliders, these drones are made of plywood which means that they are relatively cheap to put together, where they are estimated to cost a few hundred dollars each. This is versus regular drones that could cost more, especially for the larger and more rugged models.
Speaking to Engadget, principal investigator Marti Sarigul-Klijn explained the reasoning behind the idea of disposable drones. “Gliders dropped from a cargo aircraft could greatly outdistance any ground based unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for cargo logistics since the actual cargo delivery distance is the sum of the carrier aircraft’s range plus the glider’s range.”
He adds, “A carrier aircraft such as the C-17 can easily fly 2,000 nautical miles and back. Although most airdrop systems including parachutes are reused during training, all airdrop systems are expended during combat missions because it is almost impossible to retrieve them.” It is an interesting idea and you can check it out in action in the video above.
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