The Zephyr unmanned aircraft flies for over 7 days (20th July 2010) The craft is powered by lithium-sulphur batteries that charge during the day sufficiently enough to maintain the craft’s altitude by night. The plane can persist over an area, unlike low-Earth orbiting satellites or larger drones, and carry a small payload near the main body, meaning it is ideal for reconnaissance and communications which is indeed what the military want to use them for.
