DARPA’s Aerial Reconfigurable Embedded System program aims to develop and demonstrate a modular transportation system built around a vertical takeoff and landing flight module operated as an unmanned aerial vehicle. The flight module would carry one of several different types of detachable mission modules, each designed for a specific purpose, such as intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, at top left; casualty evacuation, top right; and cargo resupply, top center and bottom. Gansler said the current requirements tend to look back, rather than ahead, to plan for advanced technologies, “and that’s something we can’t afford to do because the world is changing too fast.” (Graphic courtesy of DARPA)
