Crazy aircraft #48 - The Vulture

The idea behind the Vulture is to put up a solar-powered, unmanned airplane that can stay aloft for several years. It flies at 50,000 feet or higher to get above any weather/turbulence and to give it a broad field of view:

Vulture - The Unmanned Aircraft Able to Stay in the Air for 5 Years

It acts like a satellite, so it could be used for visual surveillance, radar mapping, cell phone coverage, etc. These videos show two interpretations on how the plane might look:

NASA has already proved out he concept with the Helios:

[See #47]