Meet the US Army’s future pocket-sized spies in the skies

WE know the US military is downsizing, but this is ridiculous: The next big thing in their arsenal is about the size of a soldier’s thumb.

(Pictured) Lcpl Lee Busaano from Blackpool holding the Black Hornet Nano Unmanned Air Vehicle . The 2nd Battalion The Duke Of Lancaster's Regiment Based at weeton Barracks near Blackpool have been testing the vehicles, Weapons and techniques they may expect to employ while mentoring soldiers or the Afghan National Army on a Final Pre Afghanistan Deployment Exercise On Salisbury Plain About 500 soldiers from across the North West are taking part in the training, Including some from the Territorial Army.

WE know the US military is downsizing, but this is getting ridiculous: Now they’re getting thumb-sized surveillance drones.

The US Army Soldier Research, Development and Engineering Centre is developing pocket-sized technologies for their troops.

Called the Cargo Pocket Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance program (the inevitable acronym is CP-ISR), it aims to give platoons their own real-time surveillance drones — without burdensome, bulky equipment.

The little helicopter, nicknamed Black Hornet Nano, is intended to help small squads of soldiers see what is going on around them without having to expose themselves to hostile fire. It carries three small, real-time surveillance cameras and can flit about inside buildings or above city streets, through woods or over rural landscapes.

It can stay aloft for up to 25 minutes at a time and comes in a package weighing only 16 grams.

It’s swift, and virtually silent. A GPS chip ensures it knows where it is.

The benefits?

A soldier’s best friend? A British soldier testing one of the Black Hornet Nano vehicles. Source: Supplied.

Real time, lightweight for your average unit of soldiers.

Hefty surveillance drones are currently managed from afar and often don’t offer the fast, tailored detail needed by individual squads.

This one comes in a package the size of a lunch box.

But the pocket drone isn’t quite ready yet.

It has a whole host of military communications and security standards to conform to.

And then they’ll need to find countermeasures for the common household flyswatter.