Special forces soldiers to get personal drones: ‘Elite squads’ testing tiny stealth spy craft that fits in the palm of a hand

It can fly about a kilometer and stay aloft more than 25 minutes, and is controlled by a small flipdown screen and joystick which can be attached to the soldier’s utility belt.

When needed, soldiers can simply take the drone from a small box that straps to a utility belt – which is also where the data is stored, as opposed to on the drone itself, in case it’s captured.

The video feeds directly to a small, chest-mounted screen.

The operator steers it with a videogame-like one-handed controller, or sets waypoints to allow the drone to fly itself using the touchscreen controller.

At the recent National Defense Industrial Association conference, Defense One reporters saw the Hornet in flight and said its video feed was ‘surprisingly clear’.