Facebook completes first test flight of its massive ‘Aquila’ internet delivery drone

Jul21

by Sindy Cator on July 21, 2016 at 5:27 pm

After several months testing smaller scale models, Facebook has successfully completed its first full-scale test flight of the massive Aquila drone. With a wingspan rivaling that of a Boeing 737, only weighing much less due to a carbon fiber composite design, the team reached a major milestone by launching, and flying, the drone for more than 90 minutes — more than three times the planned test run. Intending to provide internet to the 1.6 billion people worldwide that don’t have access to it, Facebook plans to use the solar-powered drone to beam coverage to 60-mile-wide areas on the ground while staying…