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Visit us in Washington, DC and Chantilly, VA to explore hundreds of the world’s most significant objects in aviation and space history. Free timed-entry passes are required for the Museum in DC.
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Military Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV)
Six modern military UAVs that represent a variety of missions and technologies.
This exhibit is now closed.
The U.S. military began experimenting with unmanned aircraft as early as World War I. By World War II, unmanned craft could be controlled by radio signals, usually from another aircraft. Vehicles that could return from a mission and be recovered appeared in the late 1950s. Today, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) perform a wide range of missions and are used by all four branches of the military.
This exhibit showcased six modern military UAVs that represented a variety of missions and technologies. They ranged from large vehicles that can carry offensive weapons to a miniature system whose components are light and compact enough to be carried in a Marine’s backpack.
This exhibit was made possible through the generosity of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.
National Air and Space Museum in Washington, DC
Plan Your Visit
Related Topics:
Aviation
Military aviation
Drones
Afghanistan War
Gulf War
Iraq War
Modern military aviation
Post-Cold War
In This Exhibit
Lockheed Martin / Boeing RQ-3A Dark Star
Object
AeroVironment RQ-14A Dragon Eye
Object
Pioneer RQ-2A UAV
Object
General Atomics MQ-1L Predator A
Object
RQ-7A Shadow 200
Object
Boeing X-45A Joint Unmanned Combat Air System (J-UCAS)
Object
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