What Happened
Autonomous Tiltrotor Aircraft Designed for Apache and Cheyenne Fleets
Defense firm Anduril and aviation manufacturer Archer have unveiled a new Group 5 drone called Thunder, designed to be a ’loyal wingman’ for helicopters like the Apache and future Cheyenne fleet. The fully autonomous, armed reconnaissance tiltrotor aircraft has been in development for about three years and is based on lessons learned from Anduril’s fixed-wing YFQ-44A aircraft. Thunder is expected to have a range and speed equivalent to the Cheyenne and payload capacity similar to the Apache, and will be able to fly at higher altitudes than an Apache. The drone’s development was first reported by Breaking Defense.