Boeing's new blimp drones could refuel while airborne and fly forever

Just when you thought military drones couldn't get any scarier, now they don't even need to land. As Discover reports, Boeing was just granted a patent it applied for in 2013 covering technology that would allow aerial refueling for blimp-like drones. These forever drones may never need to touch the ground:

When the batteries are low, Boeing's drones would unfurl a tether, much like a butterfly proboscis, and link up with a power tower on the ground. Since these drones float, they would stay stationary until they're fully juiced up.

Ideally, these drones would hook onto stationary ground power towers to recharge. But Boeing doesn't want the military to be so limited. Why not let drones draw power from a probably doomed cruise ship, or a 1980s land yacht station wagon?

The appeal of this tech is clear: Whether they're hovering over an NFL stadium to create aerial coverage sponsored by Goodyear or hovering over a war zone to create aerial surveillance sponsored by the Pentagon, airships' one great talent is their ability to stay aloft in one place for a long time. Airship drones that don't need to land to refuel would be good for even more persistent surveillance.

Source: Discover