Peering into a volcano about to erupt, checking how fast a forest fire is spreading, exploring the wreck of a sunken ship, charting your enemy's position and taking out a military target—these are just some of the uses of drones today.
Little more than ten years ago drones were barely used, but now more than 50 countries have them in service and they are not only changing how wars are fought but how crops are sprayed, how underwater pipelines are monitored, and even how sports events are filmed. If it's too risky to send a manned aircraft to survey the intensity of a hurricane or too costly for conservation wardens to chart the movement of wildlife, drones can be used.
From drones the size of a fingertip to drones that can carry soldiers, from single rotorcraft to multi-rotorcraft to propeller craft drones, from remote-controlled drones to drones that fly autonomously, Drones features 43 of these complex and very different unmanned vehicles. There is also a spread on the working life of drone operators, who control the drones from thousands of miles away. The book's annotations, diagrams, top and side view artworks and photographs help to explain the terminology and systems used. Featuring specially commissioned, computer-generated colour illustrations, Drones is an exciting, accessibly written work about the latest in military and civilian aviation technology.