British businesses have found countless uses for unmanned aerial vehicles or drones, from environmental surveying to mapping of mines and quarries. They've been tested by police forces and are expected to be deployed during the London Olympics.
And with increasingly sophisticated technology, functions that are normally performed by a pilot are now being done by software.
Defence company BAE has begun test flights of an unmanned jet which it says can reach 400 kilometres an hour, predict bad weather, avoid obstacles like other planes and perform emergency landings.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
The company is now campaigning for use of air space reserved for piloted crafts, but aviation authorities are concerned about drone safety.
The bid comes amid heated debate over the use of 'drone' technology for targeted assassinations in Yemen and Pakistan.
Channel 4 News' Girish Juneja reports
