The drone wasn’t the two-legged “Star Wars” type. It was, in fact, an unmanned, heavily armed M113 armored personnel carrier that provided suppressive fire for a mine-clearing operation.
The Army has been using drones in theater since the Iraq War in 2003 to go into high risk areas without needlessly risking lives. But combining humans and robots in the field in close quarters opens a new era in U.S. military planning and operations.
And yes, the Army is on the path toward developing armed soldier bots...but testing and deployment have a ways to go yet. Learn more here.