Facebook Finishes Aquila Solar-Powered Internet Drone With Span Of A Boeing 737

Facebook has announced the completion of its first full-scale drone, which it says has the wingspan of a Boeing 737 and will provide internet access in remote parts of the world. The company said it would test the aircraft in the US later in 2015. The plane would weigh about 880lbs, said Yael Maguire, the company’s engineering director of connectivity, and operate between 60,000ft and 90,000ft – above the altitude of commercial airplanes – so it would not be affected by weather. Jay Parikh, vice-president of engineering, said: “Our mission is to connect everybody in the world.” Although Facebook does not immediately face policy or legal hurdles in testing its drone in the US, Maguire said, it was the first company to fly at such altitudes and had a team working with policymakers to help set guidelines.