The Army is testing medevac drones that lift injured soldiers from battlefields

In a combat experiment that oddly resembles the claw game at an arcade, the Army will strap a test dummy under an oversized drone at an exercise in Poland this week, the first step toward eventually evacuating injured soldiers from active combat.

As part of ongoing NATO exercises in Poland, the Army will test whether an oversized quadcopter, known as a Flowcopter, can safely fly a casualty out of combat and to a nearby field hospital, officials confirmed to Task & Purpose. 

The Poland exercise follows a 2nd Cavalry Regiment medical evacuation demo with the Flowcopter unmanned aerial vehicle, UAV, in Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland. On Sunday, soldiers prepared for the full exercise by loading a test dummy onto the drone during an Autonomous Triage and Treatment Challenge.

The previous drone tests were done for Sabre Strike 2026, a NATO exercise that began in April and runs through the end of May. As part of the exercise, 15,000 troops from eleven countries are training across the High North, Baltic region, and Poland. For Sabre Strike, troops are running through air defense operations, counter-drone tactics, cyber defense scenarios, and the latest medical evacuations without humans in the cockpit.

The exercise will use the Flowcopter FC-100, a UAV capable of taking off and flying with up to 650 kg or just over 1400 pounds. The flight endurance depends on the weight. Carrying 330 pounds, the drone can fly for over 5 hours. But with just 110 pounds, the Flowcopter can last for a little more than 11 hours in the air.

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Source: Task & Purpose
Website: taskandpurpose.com