In a May 25, 2025, post on X, the U.S. Army’s 1st Infantry Division showed off its most recent addition: a pocket-sized drone named the Black Hornet, saying, “Drones are the new frontier of advanced weapons technology.”
But the real story here is the size of the drone. The Black Hornet 3 is the smallest helicopter we have ever seen. Purpose-built for military use, it weighs only 33 grams, can fly up to 25 minutes and sends images from anywhere within 2 km.
U.S. military drones are typically much bigger, usually more expensive and have always operated remotely by ground-based pilots removed from the troops on the battlefield. The Black Hornet, on the other hand, is meant to be the eyes in the sky for an individual combat or scout unit, yet another tool, like binoculars.
The tiny aircraft is equipped with electro-optical (EO) and infrared (IR), allowing it to operate day and night. It navigates using GPS and by inertial sensors, making it useful where communications are being jammed or where spurious GPS signals may be emitted. It is unarmed.
Clearly, at $200,000 per system (2 drones and controller), this is no toy. And at that price, it may have the highest cost per pound of any aircraft in the U.S. military, manned or otherwise.
The Black Hornet’s adoption by the U.S. is part of the modern military’s efforts to enhance the capabilities of individual troops of soldiers. By providing real-time intelligence at the troop level, rather than relying on external operators, the drone should enhance troop mission success and survivability by reducing communication lag and minimizing the need for shared resources.