RQ-11 Raven

The RQ-11 Raven is a 4.2-pound hand-launched small uncrewed aircraft that gives a squad or platoon its own overhead camera, a capability that was unthinkable at that echelon before the system fielded in 2003. It launches by throwing it like a javelin, flies for roughly 60 to 90 minutes at a few thousand feet, and lands via a controlled deep stall that lets the airframe break apart on impact without damaging the payload.

More than 20,000 Raven airframes have been delivered across U.S. and allied forces, making it by volume the most widely produced military UAS in history. Its Digital Data Link upgrade hardens the system against jamming, while AeroVironment's newer Puma LE and Switchblade families extend the tactical reconnaissance and strike lineage the Raven pioneered.

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