Drone refuels fighter jet in the air for the first time

9 Jun 2021

Image depicting drone refuelling US fighter jet

Drone refuels fighter jet in the air for the first time

Drone refuels fighter jet in the air for the first timeDrones have many uses today. For the first time ever, a drone has also been used to refuel a fighter jet flying in the air.

The US Navy recently released a video showing this operation. In the video below, you can see a fighter jet called F/A-18 Super Hornet and a drone being connected by a pipe in mid-air. The drone is known as an MQ-25 Stingray. During the operation, the Super Hornet approaches the Stingray from behind. The drone puts out a pipe that connects to the jet and then, transfers fuel.

Both the fighter jet and the drone (mentioned above) are manufactured by the American company Boeing. It designs, manufactures, and sells aeroplanes, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide.

The US Navy conducted the test in Illinois, US. Later this year, they also plan to test this with a bigger plane.

Aerial (air) refuelling is also known as in-flight refuelling (IFR), air-to-air refuelling (AAR), or tanking.

Air refuelling is done so that planes can stay up in the air for long periods. Coming back down to the ground to refuel and then taking off again, will lead to fuel wastage. So, they often get refuelled (extra fuel) mid-air. Generally, such refuelling is done with the help of bigger planes (which is the "tanker"). But now, they are trying it with a drone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q2uGkF2J1Y0

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Drones have many uses today. For the first time ever, a drone has also been used to refuel a fighter jet flying in the air. […]

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