Enhancing Leisure Living With Pro Drones

how to safely and swiftly transport supplies to the front lines? Cargo drones are now offering a new solution.
Not long ago, the United States Air Force Research Laboratory awarded a contract to YEC Electric Aviation Company for the manufacturing and delivery of a new type of cargo glider drone – the “Silent Arrow” precision-guided airdrop package.
The new cargo glider drone is a modified version of the company’s previously developed “Silent Arrow” GD-2000 glider drone, with a reduced size. It can be air-dropped from the side and rear doors of transport aircraft using pallets, gliding to deliver supplies to the front lines.
The attention garnered by the “Silent Arrow” precision-guided airdrop package is indicative of the current application of cargo drones in the military sector. Currently, many countries are vigorously developing military cargo drones, with technologies such as aerial deployment and autonomous takeoff and landing becoming increasingly mature, creating a competitive landscape.
So, which countries are developing military cargo drones? Why is there such attention and emphasis on military cargo drones? What are the key factors in their development and promotion? Let’s explore.
Development of Cargo Drones by Multiple Countries
The development of cargo drones is closely tied to the impetus provided by the civilian cargo drone market. A report by the globally renowned market research firm, Markets and Markets, predicts that the global drone logistics and transportation market will grow to $29.06 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 21.01% during the forecast period.
Based on optimistic predictions about the future application scenarios and economic benefits of drone logistics, various research institutions and companies around the world have proposed plans for the development of cargo drones. This burgeoning trend in civilian cargo drone development has, in turn, propelled the development of military cargo drones.
In 2009, two U.S. companies collaborated to introduce the K-MAX unmanned cargo helicopter. Using a dual-rotor intermeshing layout, it had a maximum payload of 2.7 tons, a range of 500 kilometers, and used GPS navigation for battlefield transport missions in nighttime, mountainous, and high-altitude environments. During the Afghanistan War, the K-MAX unmanned cargo helicopter flew for over 500 hours, transporting hundreds of tons of goods. However, this unmanned cargo helicopter was converted from an active-duty helicopter, had a loud engine noise, and was prone to exposing its position to both itself and frontline combat units.
Given the U.S. military’s desire for a silent/low-noise cargo drone, YEC Electric Aviation Company introduced the “Silent Arrow” GD-2000, a three-panel manufactured, disposable, unpowered gliding cargo drone. The drone had a large cargo bay and four foldable wings, with a payload of around 700 kilograms, suitable for transporting ammunition and supplies to the front lines. In a test in 2023, the deployed drone unfolded its wings for flight, achieving a landing accuracy of about 30 meters.
Leveraging its technological expertise in the drone field, Israel has also embarked on the research and development of military cargo drones.
In 2013, Urban Aeronautics, an Israeli company, successfully flew the “Air Mule” vertical takeoff and landing cargo drone, with its export model known as the ” Cormorant” drone. The unique configuration of the drone included two ducted fans on the fuselage for vertical takeoff and landing, and two ducted fans at the rear for horizontal thrust. It could reach speeds of up to 180 kilometers per hour, transporting 500 kilograms of cargo per mission within a combat radius of 50 kilometers, even suitable for air-drop delivery and casualty evacuation.
In recent years, a Turkish company has also developed a cargo drone named the “Albatross.” The Albatross drone has a rectangular body with six pairs of contra-rotating propellers, and six support struts underneath. The drone’s body can carry a cargo bay, enabling it to transport various supplies or transfer casualties, resembling a “flying centipede” with its propellers.
Meanwhile, the Windracer Ultra from the UK, Nuuva V300 from Slovenia, and VoloDrone from Germany are distinctive cargo drones with both military and civilian applications.
Additionally, some commercial multi-rotor drones can also undertake the task of transporting smaller loads, providing supplies and support to frontlines and outposts.
Strengths and Weaknesses of Military Cargo Drones
In comparison to manned fixed-wing transport aircraft, transport helicopters, and ground transportation channels, military cargo drones have both strengths and weaknesses in their role performance.
Their obvious strengths lie in their high reliability, safety, and cost-effectiveness.
Firstly, cargo drones do not require cabins, pressurized cabins, and other life support systems. This not only reduces manufacturing and maintenance costs but also allows for more space in the cargo bay to load and transport goods, maximizing volume utilization.
Secondly, some of these pro drones have low requirements for manufacturing materials. For example, the “Silent Arrow” GD-2000 glider drone uses relatively inexpensive three-ply board construction, which not only reduces costs but also shortens the research and production cycle.
Thirdly, they can work continuously in high-risk, high-threat environments. Like other unmanned equipment, once the challenge of high automation is overcome, military cargo drones can efficiently transport goods according to instructions or programmed procedures. In harsh environments such as mountains, plateaus, high-altitude areas, complex weather conditions, or even in areas with nuclear or biochemical contamination, they can perform supply and support tasks without considering the physiological and psychological endurance of a pilot, unlike manned aircraft.
Moreover, cargo drones, when combined with manned transport aircraft, can achieve a synergistic effect of “1+1>2.” Small cargo drones carried by manned fixed-wing transport aircraft can be released from the air upon reaching the target area. These small cargo drones can then “travel on their own” to deliver goods, not only helping provide transport supplies to more distant support points, ensuring the safety of manned fixed-wing transport aircraft but also ensuring the success rate of airborne delivery through this “doppelgänger” approach.
Especially for small batches of emergency supplies such as medicines, water, batteries, weapon components, the advantages of using cargo drones for transport become more apparent.
However, military cargo drones are not without their drawbacks. Compared to traditional transportation methods, one significant limitation is that they often have small fuselages and cargo volumes, only able to transport basic supplies and incapable of carrying heavy or large-sized goods. For instance, the K-MAX unmanned cargo helicopter, when compared to the carrying capacity of manned helicopters, is relatively lightweight, with a maximum lifting load of 2.7 tons. Many other cargo drones can only carry hundreds of kilograms of cargo, unlike fixed-wing transport aircraft or transport helicopters, which can transport equipment such as airdropped armored vehicles, ultra-light howitzers, and assault vehicles directly to deployment sites. It is impossible for cargo drones to directly deploy large amounts of personnel and materials like conventional road and rail lines.
Therefore, from the current perspective, cargo drones cannot replace manned transport aircraft, helicopters, and other aerial transportation forces, nor can they challenge the predominant position of land military transportation lines. Further technological support is needed for development.
More Technical Support Needed for Development
Most military cargo drones have evolved from civilian cargo drones, hence possessing dual-use characteristics. However, considering the primary environment of use is the battlefield, the development of military cargo drones also requires support from some other key technologies.
It is the interaction between these civilian and key technologies that gives military cargo drones the potential to venture deeper into the battlefield.
In summary, the future development of military cargo drones requires support from the following types of technologies.

1. Technology compatible with current commercial airworthiness standards: While military cargo drones may not need to consider commercial airworthiness standards extensively during wartime, a series of risk assessments and systematic strategies must be carried out during the development process. This is to prevent risks to the unmanned aircraft and ground forces, especially in aspects such as flight control logic. If military cargo drones are to perform military transport tasks during peacetime, except in remote uninhabited areas, they still need to be designed and manufactured in accordance with commercial airworthiness standards. Currently, countries with dual-use cargo drones generally approach their flights over inhabited areas with caution. Clearly, for military cargo drones to achieve “unrestricted free flight” in the future, they need to further align with current commercial airworthiness standards.
2. Platform-specific technology closely related to actual combat: If civilian cargo drones are primarily designed around goals such as emissions reduction and energy saving, military cargo drones need to emphasize requirements closely related to actual combat, such as low visibility and low noise. On the one hand, breakthroughs in power are sought to make cargo drones both difficult to detect and powerfully propelled. On the other hand, through the use of new technologies and processes, continuous innovation in the aerodynamics, structure, strength, and materials of drones is needed to better meet military requirements.
3. Intelligent control and precise positioning technology: Military cargo drones will inevitably encounter various unexpected situations during operations and face complex terrains. To complete tasks in such circumstances, intelligent control and precise positioning technologies are crucial. These technologies give drones the capability for obstacle avoidance, path planning, and coordination. Additionally, research and application of advanced anti-interference technologies are indispensable. Only with anti-interference capabilities can cargo drones accurately locate themselves in complex electromagnetic environments and fly to their destinations.
4. Advanced data link technology: With the development of “swarm” technology, where numerous small cargo drones are grouped into a “swarm” to perform bulk supply missions to the front lines, this scenario is likely to appear on future battlefields. To achieve this, it is necessary to ensure coherent and stable communication between unmanned aircraft and manned aircraft, as well as secure and smooth information exchange between unmanned aircraft, unmanned aircraft, and other devices. This requires advanced data link technology to ensure that the link is always trustworthy, reliable, and available. It can be said that whether there is secure and reliable data link technology will directly affect the overall level of use of cargo drones in the future.
5. Air delivery and autonomous takeoff and landing technology: In a wartime scenario, the working environment of military cargo drones will be more harsh, making it challenging to find complete runways. Therefore, many countries favor cargo drones with vertical takeoff and landing capabilities. This reliance on advanced air delivery and autonomous takeoff and landing technology ensures the safe completion of a series of actions. More specifically, cargo drones must be able to find simple landing points and land during both day and night, without the need for much ground guidance. Military cargo drones must achieve “self-help” in these aspects through mature technology to avoid issues such as stalled landings, ensuring the integrity of goods and the completion of transportation tasks.