Although such drones are, for the moment, confined mainly to military areas, civilian versions are being developed for tasks like border patrols, and search and rescue missions.

The Micro Systems, Inc MOdular Networked TArGet control Equipment (MONTAGE) is a flexible, expandable control system for ground, sea surface, and high performance air vehicles.

These robots, typically launched by foot soldiers with a catapult, slingshot or hand toss, far outnumber their larger kin, which are the size of piloted aeroplanes.