Teledyne FLIR presented its latest Black Hornet 4 nano unmanned aerial system at Eurosatory 2026, showcasing a compact reconnaissance drone designed to provide rapid situational awareness for dismounted soldiers in contested environments.
Speaking to Defensehere during the exhibition, Johannes Rudolfsen, Senior Technical Product Specialist at Teledyne FLIR, described the system as the company’s most advanced nano-UAV to date.
The Black Hornet 4 weighs approximately 70 grams and is designed to be launched by hand, operating both indoors and outdoors, with or without GPS availability.
“It is the smallest form factor capability nano UAV you will get on the market,” Rudolfsen said.
The system is equipped with a dual-sensor payload, combining a 12-megapixel electro-optical camera with a 640×512 thermal imager, allowing operators to switch between white-hot, black-hot and fused imaging modes depending on mission requirements.
Designed for rapid deployment, the drone can be operational within minutes and is intended to reduce cognitive load on soldiers by simplifying reconnaissance tasks in complex environments.
A key feature highlighted by Teledyne FLIR is the system’s “Zipline Mode”, which enables the UAV to fly in a straight path while the operator rotates the onboard camera view. This function is intended to support urban reconnaissance and corner scanning in confined or contested terrain.
“For landing the system, I can simply point it towards where I want it, and then I grab it,” Rudolfsen said.
The Black Hornet 4 is designed for use in GPS-denied and electronically contested environments and incorporates improved endurance, obstacle avoidance and battery performance compared to earlier versions.
According to product specifications, the system can fly for more than 30 minutes, cover distances beyond three kilometers, and operate in winds up to 25 knots, while maintaining stability in rain and harsh conditions.
Teledyne FLIR said the platform is intended to enhance soldier-level intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities while remaining lightweight, discreet and easily deployable at the squad level.