Revolutionary pilotless drone can take-off and land vertically extracting casualties from battlefield without putting pilots in danger
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A revolutionary pilotless drone that can rescue casualties from battlefields has completed its first test mission.
Israel-based Tactical Robotics said The Cormorant could replace helicopter rescue missions - which currently puts pilots at risk.
As part of the demonstration at at a remote airfield in northern Israel earlier this month The Cormorant initially took off with a full cargo of military supplies then descended vertically, landing on the grass.
The cargo was then offloaded and the team put the patient in its place, then watched it take off again.
(Image: Cover Images)
(Image: Cover Images)
(Image: Cover Images)
(Image: Cover Images)
The Cormorant can fly at 112mph, has a mission weight of 1,520kg and can fly for 2.6 hours.
This milestone was announced at the Israel Combat Rescue and Emergency Medicine conference.
The test was carried out for the Israel Defence Force at Megiddo Airfeld in the Galilee on May 29 and offers huge hope for the future of rescue missions among warzones.
A monitor supplied by the IDFs chief surgeon Trauma Branch transmits vital information to the crews on the ground, in addition to a video camera for two-way communication with the patient.
(Image: Cover Images)
(Image: Cover Images)
(Image: Cover Images)
(Image: Cover Images)
Tactical Robotics explain the demonstration, a combination of cargo delivery and casualty evacuation, "rejects Cormorant's unique dual-role capability as the only UAS recognised by NATO to fulfill both cargo delivery and CasEvac missions."
They add: "As such, the aircraft is designed to exceed the standard reliability and handling qualities required of a typical, tactical UAS in order to meet the requirements to safely ferry human cargo back from the battlefield."
The Cormorant is one of the most functional autonomous drones to date and there are several other companies looking to give a more civilian approach to flying autonomous vehicles.
In January, AirSpaceX debuted its autonomous vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) aircraft called MOBi ONE and the autonomous air taxi Vahana -is set to hit cities as early as 2020.