A target drone is an unmanned, remote control

Remote control

A remote control is a component of an electronics device, most commonly a television set, used for operating the television device wirelessly from a short line-of-sight distance.The remote control is usually contracted to remote...

led aerial vehicle, usually used in the training of anti-aircraft crews.

In their simplest form, target drones often resemble radio controlled model aircraft. More modern drones may use countermeasures, radar

Radar

Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...

, and similar systems to mimic real aircraft.

More advanced drones are made from large, old anti-ship missile

Anti-ship missile

Anti-ship missiles are guided missiles that are designed for use against ships and large boats. Most anti-ship missiles are of the sea-skimming type, many use a combination of inertial guidance and radar homing...

s which had their warheads removed.

Obsolete jet and propeller-powered aircraft (such as the Fairey Firefly

Fairey Firefly

The Fairey Firefly was a British Second World War-era carrier-borne fighter aircraft and anti-submarine aircraft of the Fleet Air Arm ....

, Gloster Meteor

Gloster Meteor

The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...

 and de Havilland Sea Vixen used at RAE Llanbedr

Llanbedr Airport

-History:Llanbedr Airfield , formerly RAF Llanbedr, is a former military facility located in the Snowdonia National Park near the village of Llanbedr, Gwynedd, northwest Wales. It opened in 1941 as part of RAF Fighter Command's 12 Group...

 between the 1950s and 1990s) have also been modified into remote controlled drones, but such modifications are costly.

See also

• Airspeed Queen Wasp
  Airspeed Queen Wasp
  |-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* "Airspeed AS.30 Queen Wasp." Control Column, Official Organ of the British Aircraft Preservation Council, Volume 12, No. 2, February/March 1978....
  
  
• BQM-74 Chukar
  BQM-74 Chukar
  The BQM-74 Chukar is a series of aerial target drones produced by Northrop. The Chukar has gone through three major revisions, including the initial MQM-74A Chukar I, the MQM-74C Chukar II, and the BQM-74C Chukar III...
  
  
• de Havilland Queen Bee
• DRDO Lakshya
• Fairey Queen
  Fairey III
  The Fairey Aviation Company Fairey III was a family of British reconnaissance biplanes that enjoyed a very long production and service history in both landplane and seaplane variants...
  
  
• GAF Jindivik
  GAF Jindivik
  The GAF Jindivik is a target drone produced by the Australian Government Aircraft Factory . The name is from an Aboriginal Australian word meaning the hunted one. Two manned prototypes, were built as GAF Pikas as a proof of concept to test the aerodynamics, engine and radio control systems,...
  
  
• Miles Queen Martinet
• Ryan Firebee
  Ryan Firebee
  The Ryan Firebee was a series of target drones or unmanned aerial vehicles developed by the Ryan Aeronautical Company beginning in 1951. It was one of the first jet-propelled drones, and one of the most widely-used target drones ever built....
  
  
• Unmanned aerial vehicle
  Unmanned aerial vehicle
  An unmanned aerial vehicle , also known as a unmanned aircraft system , remotely piloted aircraft or unmanned aircraft, is a machine which functions either by the remote control of a navigator or pilot or autonomously, that is, as a self-directing entity...
  
  

External Links

• "Catapult Launches Target Planes" Popular Science, December 1931, page 121 (bottom of page)