British army’s ultra-resistant mini spy drones

It’s called Bug Nano Drone and the name couldn’t be more appropriate. Its tiny size and shape are in fact similar to those of a bug, and it vaguely recalls a beetle. Taking inspiration from the animal world to create small devices to be used in intelligence field is certainly nothing new. Just think of the “so common” bugs made famous by the many spy films and infinite spy TV series. The combination of its features and capabilities in the field, however, made the tiny drone noteworthy, making it the last gem of the British army.

The Bug Nano Drone is a sort of David of drones: small but powerful. It combines its small size with super strength that allows it to keep flying even with gusts of wind up to 45 knots. It was created in collaboration by Uavtek, British military and government drone manufacturer, and Bae Systems, the British defense, security and aerospace company. It was the latter who communicated that the Queen’s army recently acquired 30 units to be tested in the field. After all, the UK Minister of Defense had long ago stated that £66 million would be spent on surveillance projects and combat vehicles, keeping the UK the title of Europe’s biggest defence spender.

This tiny tactical drone has been designed to be used in reconnaissance, surveillance and inspection missions in all weather conditions. It weighs as much as a smartphone, i.e. 196 g, the battery lasts up to 40 minutes, it has a two-kilometre range and it is able to withstand winds of over 80 km/h. In fact, Bae Systems made it known that it was the only nano drone that held out during the adverse conditions in which the Army Warfighting Experiment took place.

“In even the toughest weather, the Bug can deliver vital tactical intelligence on what’s around the corner or over the next hill, working autonomously to give troops a visual update. Combined with our other information advantage products, this video feed could be shared multi-domain, enabling commanders on land, sea and air to increase their situational awareness and inform their decisions” explained James Gerard, Principal Technologist at Bae Systems.