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Everyone knows what <keyword id="94769" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="drones">drones</keyword> are, but it is only recent that these <keyword id="6647309" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flying-Machines">flying machines</keyword> became affordable for the end consumer. Up until now, drones, namely those with four propellers -- <keyword id="2690760" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="quad-copters">quad-copters</keyword> -- were used only for aerial filming and the likes. However, the reduced costs meant that the everyday hobbyist could now afford to get one without burning a hole in the pocket.<br />
<br /> There are literally tonnes of these quad-copters available in the market right now, many of which are actually more affordable than you would think. Since it’s impossible to cover all of those in one article, let us talk about <keyword id="2690825" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="top-5-drones">top 5 drones</keyword>, which you can buy right now, regardless of your expertise.<br />
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<em>(The article has been written by Yash Garg)</em><br />

Here Are 5 Drones That You Can’t Resist

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US Army is rushing to develop its own tank-killing drone that soldiers can carry into combat.</li><li>The weapon will be a loitering munition, a type of drone being used widely in the war in Ukraine.</li></ul><p>As kamikaze drones wreak havoc in the Ukraine war, the US Army is rushing to develop its own tank-killing version.</p><p>The Low Altitude Stalking and Strike Ordnance program aims to develop a lightweight weapon that can be carried by soldiers in the Army's Infantry Brigade Combat Teams.</p><p>Known as LASSO, the weapon will be "a man-portable, tube launched, lethal payload munition," according to an <a href="https://www.peosoldier.army.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/3451645/lethal-unmanned-systems-press-release/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announcement</a> by the Army's Program Executive Office Soldier. "It includes electrical optical/infrared sensor, precision flight control, and the ability to fly, track and engage non-line-of-sight targets and armored vehicles with precision lethal fires. LASSO currently consists of three modules: the launch tube, unmanned aerial system, and fire control station."</p><p>In a sign of how seriously the Army is taking this project, LASSO has been deemed an <a href="https://acqnotes.com/acqnote/acquisitions/joint-urgent-operational-need-juon" target="_blank" rel="noopener">urgent capability acquisition</a>, a Department of Defense procedure designed to deliver new systems to the field in less than two years. These acquisitions are reserved for capabilities that are "meant to save lives or ascertain mission accomplishment."</p><div type="image" title="A Ukrainian serviceman attach a 3D version of an explosive as he trains to drop explosives devices from a drone in a secret location in Lviv Oblast, Ukraine." height="2000" width="3000" msid="102504126" hostid="261"></div><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/navy-experiment-with-tdr1-drone-was-preview-of-loitering-munitions-2023-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Loitering munitions</a> — the US military avoids the term "kamikaze drone" — are a cross between a drone and a guided artillery shell.</p><p>Light enough to be carried by foot soldiers and equipped with a warhead and a camera, they can orbit an area while relaying imagery to an operator who decides when to crash it into a target. They were designed to give infantry an indirect-fire capability to hit targets shielded from sight by terrain or other obstacles.</p><p>Though loitering munitions such as the US-made <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-sends-ukraine-loitering-drones-for-kamikaze-attacks-on-russia-2022-3">Switchblade</a> have been around for years, they have seen their most prolific use in Ukraine. Ukrainian troops have often strapped small explosive charges to <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-04-01/fpv-racing-drone-kamikaze-attacks-ukraine-russia-war/102155702" target="_blank" rel="noopener">commercially produced quad-copters</a>, turning them into suicide drones capable of knocking out armored vehicles and artillery pieces. Russia has used military-grade <a href="https://www.rferl.org/a/lancet-drones-russia-invasion-counteroffensive-kamikaze/32493513.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lancet 3</a> loitering munitions to hunt Ukrainian artillery and disrupt Ukraine's counteroffensive.</p><p>All of which makes LASSO interesting on multiple levels.</p><p>It is an indication that the US Army is no longer keen on the Switchblade, a backpack-size loitering munition that has been used by the Army, Marine Corps, and Special Operations Command for more than a decade, including in Afghanistan.</p><p>In a move that generated a lot of buzz, the US sent more than 700 Switchblades to Ukraine, mostly the 6-pound Switchblade 300 but also a few of the 33-pound Switchblade 600.</p><div type="image" title="Remain of a Russian-made Shahed 136 at an exhibition showing remains of missiles and drones that Russia used to attack Kyiv on May 12, 2023 in Kyiv, Ukraine." height="2000" width="3000" msid="102504128" hostid="261"></div><p>Curiously, the Army's 2024 missile procurement budget doesn't include any Switchblades. One reason may be their price. Each Switchblade costs $58,000, though defense writer David Hambling estimates the true cost at <a href="https://www.19fortyfive.com/2023/07/the-u-s-army-wont-buy-anymore-switchblade-300-kamikaze-drones/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">about $80,000</a> apiece. But Ukraine is launching swarms of militarized commercial drones that cost a few hundred dollars each. Even if some are shot down or disrupted by <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ukraine-losing-10000-drones-month-russia-electronic-warfare-rusi-report-2023-5">Russian jamming,</a> economics favor the cheaper drone.</p><p>What is also interesting about LASSO is that the Army is emphasizing it as an anti-armor weapon. "This anti-tank capability is a key contributor to our efforts to increase the lethality of the Army of 2030's IBCT and maintain overmatch against our near-peer threats," an Army spokesman said.</p><p>While there are frequent videos of Ukrainian drones <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JbZEK9kwqQ" target="_blank" rel="noopener">crashing into Russian tanks</a>, these are improvised weapons. The Switchblade 300's warhead is only the size of a 40 mm grenade, while the Switchblade 600, which is designed to kill armored vehicles, is expensive. It's not clear what kind of warhead LASSO will pack, and the Army didn't mention cost in its announcement, but if combat in Ukraine is a guide, LASSO will target the thinner armor on top of tanks.</p><p>There are numerous top-attack anti-tank weapons — the US-made Javelin missile and laser-guided artillery shells such as US's Excalibur and Russia's Krasnopol, to name a few — but these munitions cost hundreds of thousands of dollars each. If the Army can figure out a way to build a LASSO that's powerful enough to destroy a tank but cheap enough for mass employment, the impact could be immense.</p><p><em>Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds a master's in political science. Follow him on <a href="https://www.twitter.com/@mipeck1" target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow">Twitter</a> and <a href="https://affiliate.insider.com/?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.linkedin.com%2Fin%2Fmipeck%2F&amp;amazonTrackingID=null&amp;site=bi&amp;vikingID=63a0ec69c4cc6f36ff0dbbd6&amp;platform=browser&amp;sc=false&amp;disabled=false&amp;sessionID=1666393597540n9zaize3&amp;postID=64cd9e5ecfd91a08ec465dfd" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noindex noopener sponsored">LinkedIn</a>.</em></p>

As the drone battle in Ukraine unfolds, the US Army is scrambling to get its soldiers a new one-way tank-buster

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The widespread use of drones in Ukraine underscores their rapid development as battlefield tools.</li><li>The US military has been paying close attention to how drones have been used in recent conflicts.</li></ul><p>The times are changing on the battlefield, and that's especially true for US special operators, who now have to account for threats that didn't exist a few years or even a months ago.</p><p>Like the rest of the US military, US Special Operations Command has been paying very close attention to the innovations on the battlefield in Ukraine.</p><p>One of the most interesting but also concerning developments has to do with drones. Both Moscow and Kyiv have drones in the skies over Ukraine, dropping improvised munitions on soldiers, guiding artillery fire, identifying enemy formations, and taking out armored vehicles.</p><div type="image" title="A Ukrainian soldier holds a drone" height="1391" width="2000" msid="95437368" hostid="261" sizebytes="89192"></div><p>Ukraine's military claims to have shot down over 1,000 Russian drones, but unmanned aerial systems continue to proliferate. Russia has invested heavily in loitering munitions, buying Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones and using them widely <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/05/world/europe/kyiv-ukraine-electricity-russia-infrastructure.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">against civilian infrastructure</a>, capturing international attention.</p><p>Ukraine is also using its fair share of unmanned aerial systems. Its military and public have shown an enviable ability to adapt to the war and devise solutions that are within their limited means in order to deal with the much bigger Russian military.</p><p>Ukrainian civilians and troops have used commercial drones for military purposes, including kinetic strikes and intelligence, reconnaissance, and surveillance operations.</p><p>The US special-operations community is paying close attention to these developments and is incorporating lessons from the ground in Ukraine in preparation for the next fight.</p><h2>Special operators vs. drones</h2><div type="image" title="Iraq drone ISIS" height="2334" width="3500" msid="95437369" hostid="261" sizebytes="754266"></div><p>The US military, particularly its special-operations community, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/kamikaze-style-drones-big-advantage-and-challenge-top-marines-say-2022-5" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has been using drones for years</a>, but US special operators are used to operating in an environment in where they have complete air superiority, meaning that nothing from the sky can pose a threat to them.</p><p>That superiority couldn't last forever, and its erosion became apparent during the fight against ISIS in Iraq and Syria in the late 2010s.</p><p>This summer, the outgoing commander of SOCOM, Gen. Richard Clarke, talked about the drone problem and how the special-operations community is addressing it.</p><p>At the Aspen Security Conference in July, Clarke said that during his nearly four decades in the Army, he had "never had to look up" when operating on the ground, whether that was in Afghanistan, Iraq, or Syria.</p><div type="image" title="Syrian rebel fighter with camera drone in Homs" height="1333" width="2000" msid="95437372" hostid="261" sizebytes="333736"></div><p>"I never had to look up because the US always maintained air superiority and our forces were protected because we had air cover," Clarke said. "But now with everything from quad-copters that very small up to very large unmanned aerial vehicles, we won't always have that luxury."</p><p>In the decades following the Korean War, no US ground troops were killed by enemy air attack and US aircraft were rarely shot down, but US commanders have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/future-war-losses-like-wwii-top-air-force-officer-says-2020-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">warned that their aerial advantage is unlikely to continue</a>.</p><p>In an interview with Joint Forces Quarterly earlier this year, Clarke likened drones to improvised explosive devices, or IEDs, which insurgents were able to build on a large scale to target US troops in the Middle East and Afghanistan.</p><p>Drones "are the IEDs of the future," Clark said in the interview. "Everyone remembers 2003-2004 when the number one killer of our forces was IEDs — first in Iraq, and then it transitioned into Afghanistan. Now, an IED has wings and it can move. The wire that connected that IED or the remote device is now harder to defeat."</p><h2>Getting 'left of launch'</h2><div type="image" title="Syria special forces Kurdish Raqqa" height="1333" width="2000" msid="95437373" hostid="261" sizebytes="144244"></div><p>Generally, US special operators can take out unmanned aerial systems in two ways.</p><p>The first is with old-fashioned kinetic action, using small-arms fire or anti-aircraft missiles to shoot it down. The second is with electronic warfare, jamming the drone's flight controls so that it is unable to perform its mission.</p><p>Clarke said SOCOM is interested in another way to disrupt enemy drones — by preventing enemies from getting them in the first place.</p><p>In addition to developing ways to counter unmanned aircraft in the air, SOCOM is "looking where we can be 'left of launch' to disrupt supply chains, transportation, [and] development before it's too late," Clarke, who retired from the military in August, told Joint Forces Quarterly.</p><p>At the conference in July, Clarke said that there are opportunities for SOCOM, the Pentagon, and US intelligence agencies to work together to try to stop adversary drones before they launch.</p><div type="image" title="US soldiers during an unmanned aerial system exercise at Erbil" height="1333" width="2000" msid="95437374" hostid="261" sizebytes="180612"></div><p>"What are those supply chains and what are the intel and what are the norms of behavior for countries that are going to use these drones?" Clarke said.</p><p>That kind of intervention could be tough, as adversaries are developing resilient supply chains. Iran continues <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/iran-would-use-drones-differently-from-russian-use-in-ukraine-2022-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">to develop missiles and drones</a> despite tight US sanctions. Russia, facing increasingly strict Western sanctions, is likely to do the same, and China has invested heavily in own military capabilities.</p><p>Moreover, an effort like Clarke described would require a combined interagency effort that would likely focus more countering adversaries through intelligence efforts rather than through military action.</p><p>But drones are here to stay, and while the threat they pose to US forces is "the current problem," Clarke said in July, there also needs to be attention to "what's going to come home to roost."</p><p>"Some of these technologies could be used by our adversaries on our near abroad or even into our homeland," Clarke said.</p><p><em>Stavros Atlamazoglou is a defense journalist specializing in special operations, a Hellenic Army veteran (national service with the 575th Marine Battalion and Army HQ), and a Johns Hopkins University graduate. He is working toward a master's degree in strategy and cybersecurity at the Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies.</em></p>

After 40 years of safe skies, US special operators have to worry about threats from above, SOCOM commander says

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MGM-140_ATACMS">Wikimedia Commons</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div>The US military wants a missile that can carry explosive-packed drones to a target hundreds of miles away, <a href="https://www.sbir.gov/sbirsearch/detail/1207935" target="_blank">according</a> to a contract solicitation from the Pentagon.</p><p>Earlier this month, the DoD <a href="http://www.acq.osd.mil/osbp/sbir/solicitations/sbir20171/index.shtml" target="_blank">announced</a> it was soliciting proposals for this new missile system, which would be fired by the Army's existing MGM-140 Tactical Missile System or the M-270 Multiple Launch Rocket System. But unlike traditional armaments, the Army wants this missile packed with unmanned quad-copters that will be released, fly to their target, land, and blow themselves up.</p><p>"The ultimate goal is to produce a missile deployable, long range [unmanned aerial system] swarm that can deliver small [explosively formed penetrators] to a variety of targets," the solicitation <a href="https://www.sbir.gov/sbirsearch/detail/1207935" target="_blank">reads</a>. "This will serve as a smart augmentation to the standard missile warhead."</p><p>The payload seems to be meant for hard targets, which the Army says could potentially mean tanks, large guns, fuel storage barrels, and vehicle roofs. The contract doesn't mention exactly how many drones should be packed inside a missile.</p><p>Still, it could potentially mean hundreds of drones being deployed to a target, if a test of a "<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/pentagon-test-mini-drone-swarm-2017-1" target="_blank">drone swarm</a>" made public earlier this month is any guide. During that test, three F/A-18 Super Hornets spit out more than 100 tiny Perdix drones, which then linked up with each other to collectively make decisions and fly in formation.</p><p class="tagline"><div id="categorypromo"><p><h2><span>Read more:</span></h2><ul><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/top-internet-of-things-companies-to-watch-invest-2016-8">Top IoT Companies to Watch &amp; Invest In</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/internet-of-things-conferences-2016-8">Best IoT Conferences &amp; Expos</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/wearable-technology-iot-devices-2016-8">IoT Wearable Devices &amp; Technology</a></li><li><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/internet-of-things-security-privacy-2016-8">How the IoT Will Affect Security &amp; Privacy</a></li><li><a href="http://read.bi/iotultimate">Ultimate IoT Research Bundle</a></li></ul></p></div></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/lockheed-martin-air-force-legendary-c-5-plane-transport-submarine-2016-12">The Air Force's legendary C-5 plane is so enormous it can transport a submarine</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="ZxcThtODE6tJZN8RB5dKNArbaIpOYiuB" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

The US military wants a missile that can carry explosive drones to a target

<p class="p1"><span class="s1"><em>Business Insider's Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. And full disclosure: Business Insider has affiliate partnerships so we may get a share of the revenue from your purchase.</em></span></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3IN11Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B00D3IN11Q&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=biipdronemarch27-20&amp;linkId=JZZRXNKHAQU2NJNT"></a><p class="source"><span>Amazon</span></p></div><p></p></div>Here's the drone deal of the day.</p><p>The <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3IN11Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B00D3IN11Q&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=biipdronemarch27-20&amp;linkId=JZZRXNKHAQU2NJNT">UDI Axis Gyro RC Quadcopter drone </a>comes with a camera so that you can film as it flies, and we've got it today for nearly half price.</p><p>The high-capacity battery and strong power motors enable this drone to fly longer and more efficiently than your average drone.</p><p>"This is my first quad copter. I bought it because it has a built in camera, and the blades are protected making it a good first quad. I've slammed this thing against walls, down some stairs, and into bushes and it is still fine," one reviewer <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3IN11Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B00D3IN11Q&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=biipdronemarch27-20&amp;linkId=JZZRXNKHAQU2NJNT">wrote</a>.</p><p><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3IN11Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B00D3IN11Q&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=biipdronemarch27-20&amp;linkId=JZZRXNKHAQU2NJNT">UDI Axis Gyro RC quadcopter with camera</a>: </strong><span style="text-decoration: line-through;">$99.99</span><strong><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00D3IN11Q/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B00D3IN11Q&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=biipdronemarch27-20&amp;linkId=JZZRXNKHAQU2NJNT"> $52.76</a> <span style="color: #ff0000;">[47% off]</span></strong></p><p> </p><p class="tagline">Disclosure: This post is brought to you by Business Insider's Insider Picks team. We aim to highlight products and services you might find interesting, and if you buy them, we may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners, including Amazon. Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, is an investor in Business Insider through his personal investment company Bezos Expeditions. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback.Have something you think we should know about? Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/what-earth-would-look-like-if-ice-melted-world-map-animation-2015-2">Animated map of what Earth would look like if all the ice melted</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="5xam5iczrSx4Ibx8MvarDsu3zOG88omE" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div></hr>

DRONE DEAL OF THE DAY: This Axis Gyro RC Quadcopter drone films as it flies [47% off]

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div>Action camera maker GoPro is considering making consumer drones in 2015, <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/gopro-developing-line-of-consumer-drones-1417020883?mod=wsj_nview_latest">according to the Wall Street Journal.</a></p>
<p>The company reportedly plans to start selling these multi-rotor helicopters with attached high definition cameras late next year, and GoPro is aiming to price them between $500 and $1,000, WSJ's sources said. </p>
<p>GoPro already supplies many of the cameras attached to existing drones, such as those that come with drones made by 3D Robotics.</p>
<p>GoPro seems to have a clear interest in the drone space, as a company spokesperson told WSJ that it joined a drone advocacy group called the Small UAV Coalition earlier this year.</p>
<p>That spokesperson also noted that users are already producing "jaw dropping GoPro footage" from quad copters.</p>
<p>Drones are becoming an increasing area of interest in both the consumer and enterprise space.</p>
<p>Companies such as Parrot and China-based DJI Technology make some of the most popular drones you can purchase today. At the same time, Amazon is exploring using drones to deliver online orders as part of a new program called Prime Air. </p>

GoPro Reportedly Wants To Launch Consumer Drones Next Year

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Alex Wong/Getty Images</span></p><p class="caption">A DJI employee demonstrates flying a drone at Consumer Electronics Show 2016 in Las Vegas on January 7, 2016. [Note: This is not the drone Walmart will be using. Images of Walmart's drone cannot yet be released.]</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Walmart is getting into the drone game.</p><p>Walmart's VP of Emerging Sciences Shekar Natarajan demoed the retailer's new technology to reporters from a Bentonville, Arkansas distribution center on Thursday, on the eve of its annual shareholders meeting.</p><p>The drone technology will be replacing the jobs of inventory quality assurance employees, cutting inventory checks across massive distribution centers - the one in Bentonville is 1.2 million square feet - from one month down to a single day.</p><p>When Natarajan joined Walmart in November 2014, he and his team were tasked with investigating cutting edge technologies, asking, "How can we can converge them in ways that make sense for us?" he said.</p><p>The application at the top of the list was using drone technology to improve the safety and efficiency of Walmart's 190 US distribution centers.</p><p>In collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration and NASA, Walmart is developing internally autonomous drone technology that allows a quad-copter drone, roughly 3 x 3 feet, to take 30 images per second from a top-mounted camera.</p><p>The camera is linked to a control center and scans for tracking number matches. Matches are registered as green, empty spaces as blue, and mismatches as red. An employee monitors the drone's progress from a computer screen.</p><p>Natarajan said that the technology is six to nine months from maturation. Because it is still in early development phase, there is not yet a specific launch plan, but Walmart is planning to integrate the drones into all of its distribution centers. The company also noted that employees who served as inventory checkers will be given new job opportunities to ensure a smooth transition.</p><p>Walmart did not reveal how much money it has invested in its Emerging Sciences division, but noted that future applications of the drone, as well as other artificial intelligence and virtual reality projects, are in the works.</p><p class="tagline"><div id="categorypromo" style="border:1px solid silver; min-height:114px; padding:4px;"><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store?IR=T&amp;utm_source=House&amp;utm_term=CtgrPr-Drones&amp;utm_campaign=CtgrPr#!/THE-DRONES-REPORT/p/47962272/category=11987294"></a><strong> Get THE DRONES REPORT now!</strong> Commercial drones are already a reality. <strong>BI Intelligence</strong> takes an in-depth look at the most important aspects, including market forecasts for commercial applications, regulatory process, and the leading players.  <strong><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/research-store?IR=T&amp;utm_source=House&amp;utm_term=CtgrPr-Drones&amp;utm_campaign=CtgrPr#!/THE-DRONES-REPORT/p/47962272/category=11987294">Get the Report Here »</a></strong></div></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/there-was-an-amazing-drone-ballet-in-japan-2016-5">A 'drone ballet' in Japan is the world's coolest music and light show</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="Jsb3FnMzE60kpN6Bph5WOL-HFXuT4R9e" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Walmart is developing a drone

<p><em>The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you'll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships so we may get a share of the revenue from your purchase.</em></p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CYHZTDK/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;camp=1789&amp;creative=390957&amp;creativeASIN=B00CYHZTDK&amp;linkCode=as2&amp;tag=biipdroneofdayapril17-20&amp;linkId=RKWCN6QQO335DJRZ"></div><p></p></div></div></span></strong></a></p><p><strong><span style="color: #ff0000;"> </span></strong></p><p class="tagline">Disclosure: This post is brought to you by Business Insider's Insider Picks team. We aim to highlight products and services you might find interesting, and if you buy them, we may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners, including Amazon. Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, is an investor in Business Insider through his personal investment company Bezos Expeditions. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback.Have something you think we should know about? Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/smartphone-impact-brain-body-sleep-2015-2">This is what happens to your brain and body when you check your phone before bed</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="BvMjVqcjoHdZBG6tTpXy8UkhB5_46U_c" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div></hr>

DRONE DEAL OF THE DAY: The Blade Nano quadcopter is 17% off right now

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image"><p class="source"><span>Charles Platiau/Reuters</span></p><p class="caption">A pilot checks a Hovereye-Ex drone during an exhibition at Bretigny-sur-Orge, near Paris, on May 14, 2014. </p></div><p></p></div>The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) still doesn't know the identity of a pilot of a small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) that nearly collided with a commercial flight over Tallahassee, Florida on March 22 - or even the model of the UAV itself, Military.com <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-mystery-of-a-passenger-planes-near-miss-with-a-drone-2014-5">has reported</a>.</p>
<p>The FAA has the difficult task of regulating almost the entirety of America's highly-complex airspace, and the proliferation of domestic UAVs, which have been used for everything from <a href="http://www.forbes.com/fdc/welcome_mjx.shtml">photography</a> to <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/border-patrol-drones-being-borrowed-by-other-agencies-more-often-than-previously-known/2014/01/14/5f987af0-7d49-11e3-9556-4a4bf7bcbd84_story.html">policing</a> the U.S.-Mexican border, only makes their job harder. Still, this was the <a href="http://online.wsj.com/articles/faa-u-s-airliner-nearly-collided-with-drone-in-march-1399659956">first known near-miss</a> between a commercial plane and a UAV over U.S. airspace.</p>
<p>So why do regulators know so little known about the incident?</p>
<p>It's possible the UAV was a sophisticated remote-control hobby aircraft. "W<span>e interviewed the captain," FAA spokesperson Les Dorr told Business Insider, "and he was adamant that it was a small aircraft, that it looked like an F-4 [Phantom], and that it wasn't a helicopter or quad-copter."</span></p>
<p>The FAA has <a href="http://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/advisory_circulars/index.cfm/go/document.information/documentid/22425">guidelines</a> regarding the operation of remote-control hobby aircraft. The UAV's pilot might not even have known about the near-miss or maybe doesn't want to come forward out of fear of the potential consequences. With no apparent logs or radar of the UAV's flight, and only the airline pilot's description to go off of, we may never know the truth of what was nearly a grim landmark incident in U.S. civil aviation. It would have been "<a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/09/travel/unmanned-drone-danger/">catastrophic</a>" had the two aircraft collided, according to a top FAA official.</p>
<p>One possibility is that the UAV originated at nearby Tyndall Air Force Base, outside of Panama City, Florida. This is a viable theory because the near-miss took place at higher altitude than most hobby planes fly, and <a href="http://motherboard.vice.com/read/somethings-fishy-about-that-drone-plane-near-miss-in-florida">an F-4 Phantom looks a bit like</a> a type of drone that's used at Tyndall.</p>
<p>Typically, the FAA would coordinate with domestic UAV operators, including the U.S. military, to avoid situations like the one on March 22. The FAA issues what's called a Certificate of Authorization (COA) that requires coordination with air traffic control prior to any operation of a UAV, and the agency limits operators to certain locations and altitudes.</p>
<p>"Unmanned aerial systems can't be operated in the national airspace without some type of authorization from the FAA," <a href="http://www.aviationlawexperts.com/attorneyprofile.html">aviation law expert Gregory Winton</a> told Business Insider. "I have a hard time believing that a public-use aircraft would have been operated by the U.S. government without a COA, and if it was, the FAA should have known about it."</p>
<p>If it turns out the UAV wasn't a hobby plane, this incident would reveal a troubling lack of coordination between the FAA and the military. </p>
<p>In a future where UAVs are easy to fly and obtain, there could be plenty of businesses, individuals, or even criminal enterprises flying without FAA approval. The March 22 near-hit is still shrouded in mystery - but even if it was the result of an errant military drone, events like it could become increasingly familiar.</p>

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