Drone lands on carrier deck in historic first

A bat-winged drone touched down smoothly on the deck of a US aircraft carrier, marking a historic milestone for robotic flight.

The US Navy’s X-47B floated down toward the carrier USS George HW Bush at reduced speed and then caught an arresting wire on its tail hook, bringing it to a stop in a textbook landing.

“You saw the future today,” navy secretary Ray Mabus told journalists afterward.