Air Force Drone Crashes, Explodes In Florida And Closes Panhandle Highway [VIDEO]

No injuries have been reported in the crash of an Air Force drone being tested outside Tyndall Air Force Base, which caused a section of Florida's Panhandle highway to be shut down. The QF-4 drone crashed upon take-off early Wednesday, the Huffington Post reported. Highway 98 shut down as a result of fires from the crash. The drone has a 24-hour battery life and will remain inactive after it drains, officials said. The highway may be closed up to 24 hours. Tydell released a brief statement, but declined to comment any further, the Washington Post reported.

"An unmanned Air Force QF-4 drone, assigned here to the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group, crashed on the drone runway during take-off at 8:25 a.m. today. No personnel were injured during the incident," the statement said. "Base and local police and safety officials have closed Highway 98 and are anticipating that it will remain closed for up to 24 hours."

The plane is controlled remotely, according to an Air Force fact sheet. It simulates enemy maneuvers while missles are launched at it. The drone was likely used for target practice for the Air Force's F-22 Raptor pilots, James Lewis, a military technology expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

"It is an older fighter plane they have modified for use as a target," Lewis said. "The QF-4 is not a drone in the way we normally think of drones. It is not used for anything other than to be shot down. It is an old aircraft that would otherwise be sold for scrap."

This is the second drone crash in the area within a week, Raw Story reported. The Air Force destroyed a drone flying over the Gulf of Mexico, with vacationers reporting witnessing the blast upon detonation.