Bell Helicopter demonstrated its unmanned Hybrid Drive Train Research Aircraft (HYDRA) at the first Tech Demo edition of the Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Center of Excellence in Alma, Quebec, this week. According to the company, HYDRA uses distributed propulsion technology and a circular wing to "sustain wing-borne flight at reduced power consumption, while increasing its speed and range over a traditional multi-rotor aircraft." The demonstration flight lasted for 40 minutes and ran through automated maneuvers including takeoff, conversion into wing-borne flight, conversion into hover mode and landing.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/recent-updates/business-military/bell-demonstrates-distributed-propulsion-aircraft