Facebook test-flies drone that could one day help provide global internet access

YUMA, ARIZONA – A solar-powered drone backed by Facebook that could one day provide worldwide internet access has quietly completed a test flight in Arizona after an earlier attempt ended with a crash landing. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg's long-term plan for the drone, called Aquila, is to have it and others provide internet access to 4 billion people around the world who currently live in an internet black hole. "When Aquila is ready, it will be a fleet of solar-powered planes that will beam internet connectivity across the world," he wrote Thursday on Facebook. The drone's second flight was completed in May at Yuma Proving Ground, The Yuma Sun reported. The drone flew with more sensors, new spoilers and a horizontal propeller stopping system to help it better land after the crash in December.