How long have uavs been around

It was during this same time that the United States officially confirmed that they had been using drones in Vietnam.

The U. Department of Defense awarded the AAI Corp and Israel-based Malat contracts in the 90s to develop more advanced drone technology, which resulted in more cost-efficient technologies. The MQ-9 Reaper is a larger, more powerful version of the U. In the mids, the U. It paved the way to the MQ-9 Reaper in The Predator and Reaper drones are what most people today picture when they think of military drones.

Today, over three-dozen countries and multiple terrorist groups and non-state actors have weaponized drones in their arsenal.

Informed by military research and development over the previous years, the first use of drones for non-military ventures started in , the same year the Federal Aviation Administration issued its first commercial drone permit. Government agencies quickly began testing drone technologies for disaster relief and border surveillance while corporations began using them for commercial applications like pipeline inspections, crop evaluation, and security. Despite these major advancements in technology and regulation, it would be another decade before the commercial drone industry would truly take off.

While the commercial drone space has struggled with regulations over the last ten years, the personal and recreational drone industries have grown under less scrutiny. The majority of hobby drones, those used by private citizens for non-commercial purposes, are quadcopters, or drones with four propellers. In , the first legal delivery of medical supplies occurred in the U.

Hobby drones, such as this one by DJI , have grown in popularity over the last five years for photography and racing. In , companies around the world, from the U. In , there were That number is expected to reach million by That includes a little over half a million drones registered for recreational use.

Even as the consumer drone market exploded and reduced the cost of drone technology, enterprises were reluctant to scale their drone programs. By the time of the first US congressional hearing on the issue in , only 13 permits had been approved in nearly 10 years. That all changed in the fall of , when the landmark Part rule clearly defined requirements for commercial operations in the US, effectively making skies open for business.

Soon after, the FAA began issuing thousands of drone permits per year. During the American Civil War, an inventor patented an unmanned balloon that carried explosives that could be dropped after a time-delay fuse mechanism triggered the basket to overturn its contents. Air currents and weather patterns made it difficult to estimate for how long to set the fuse, and the balloon was never successfully deployed. By , the first aerial photograph was taken using a kite, a camera and a very long string attached to the shutter-release of the camera.

In , this technology was put to use in the Spanish-American War, resulting in the first military aerial reconnaissance photos. World War I saw the development and testing of various radio-controlled unmanned aircraft, but none emerged from the testing phase in time to be used before the war ended. Instead of being used offensively though, the Queen Bee primarily served as aerial target practice for British pilots. Its wingspan was about 20 feet 6 m , and it measured nearly 25 feet 7.

In towns and cities across Britain, the V-1 was responsible for more than civilian deaths and 35, injured civilians [source: NOVA ]. In the s and 70s, the United States flew more than 34, surveillance flights using the AQM Ryan Firebee , a UAV launched from a host plane and controlled by operators within that plane.

The U. Engineers from the manufacturer operated the aircraft with a joystick control. Old bombers were effectively stripped of non-essential equipment and loaded with explosives. A human pilot would fly the aircraft towards the designated target. Once the target was in view, the autopilot was engaged, and the pilot bailed out of the plane. The BQ-7 would then fly to the target on its own.

The BQ-7 was virtually ineffective in war, and the pilots that bailed out had a high rate of death or capture. Military commanders were able to increase their situational awareness with these platforms significantly. Israel employed their drones to outmaneuver the Syrian Airforce and win the battle with minimal casualties.

The legitimacy of UAVs in warfare was established. By the conclusion of the Vietnam War, the U. The U. The system was an upgraded IAI Scout drone and featured significant payload improvements.

This platform brought weaponized drones to the battlefield like never before. Probably more than any other UAV, the Predator created the public image of drones striking targets around the world.

Predator drones with thermal cameras were able to detect the heat signatures of humans from up to 10, feet away. Around this time, the consumer drone industry began to really take shape.

The potential for industrial and consumer UAV markets was more than enough for many businesses to invest in the technology. The UAV was a small quadcopter fit for consumer use. An app on a smartphone was all the pilot needed to operate the drone safely. While the company was founded in , the iconic Phantom series was not released until This drone began the modern camera-equipped drone craze.

Testing of various UAV concepts and work with regulatory agencies around the world begins. As more industries explore how drones can make their work safer and more cost effective, growth is expected to rapidly surge in the coming years.

Now, more than ever before, regulations are being adjusted to provide fast-track authorizations for promising use-cases. If you are looking to explore what UAV technology can do for your organization speak with the experts at Consortiq.