Drone Test: Read the Fine Print (If You Can See It.)

"Target = black cross on white desert? Nice to know that some things never change."

Anduril Industries, whose mission statement is “Transforming defense capabilities with advanced technology,” recently released video of their Altius 700M autonomous drone unerringly crashing into a target at the Army’s Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah, igniting same in a suitably impressive fireball. A press report gave the demonstration a glowing review, with the headline “Anduril attack drone deemed ‘accurate and effective’ in Dugway trials.”

Producing dramatic test results is an art, sometimes requiring expert finesse. Back in the days when the Army was trying to ram through a lethally vulnerable version of the Bradley Fighting Vehicle, it famously filled ammunition compartments of a test vehicle with water. This ensured the vehicle would not explode in an embarrassing conflagration when hit, as was otherwise normally the case. Anduril’s drone triumph therefore requires careful scrutiny, especially in light of another of the company’s drone demonstration videos a few months back, in which a jet-powered Roadrunner drone returned to earth, tail first, apparently without kicking up a (normally inevitable) cloud of dust.