Harford County Airport Testing Drones To Lighten Cargo Loads For Infantry Soldiers
HARFORD COUNTY, Md. (WJZ) — This is not your every day drone.
Harford County Airport will play a role with the groundbreaking for a development and testing center. The goal is to reduce the load combat infantry soldiers carry into battle.
"We can move supplies the last tactical mile by air. You see images of soldiers carrying quite a bit on their backs, so anything we can do to lighten the load is a big help for the soldiers in the field," said Mark Butkiewicz with Survice Engineering.
Combat can happen anywhere, so the drones have been field tested from arctic conditions to the desert.
Moving supplies would be the latest use for the technology.
"They can give intelligence information and it can also, when needed, have fire power, with situations like ISIS," said Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Maryland.
But when it comes to front-line deliveries, specialized drones can carry up to 400 lbs.
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