The U.S. military has got a new drone on the way, if Boeing’s newest test flight has anything to say about it. A retired F16 fighter jet has been retrofitted with equipment which allows it to be flown remotely.
The BBC reports that two fighter pilots controlled the unmanned F-16, taking it to speeds of Mach 1.47 and a height of 40,000 feet. They were able to perform fighter moves like a barrel roll and a split S while the plane was aloft. The plane was then landed without incident.
Boeing seems to have designs on using these obsolete planes as training targets for fighter pilots in live-fire tests, allowing them to get a taste of real combat without putting an opposing pilot in danger.