Boeing’s Phantom Eye liquid-hydrogen-powered remotely piloted aircraft completes its first autonomous flight, reaching an altitude of more than 4,000 feet and a cruising speed of 62 knots during its 28-minute flight at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif.
A top Pentagon tech official called on industry this week to help the military develop “lighter, more efficient” directed energy weapons designed to go on aircraft and conduct special operations missions or down drones—areas where the Air Force’s directed energy efforts have been quiet as of late.