The often violent dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as simply Karabakh, dates to before the collapse of the Soviet Union and the independence of the two countries. Though part of Azerbaijan, the region has a significant ethnic Armenian population and a rebel movement that seeks to break away and join Armenia, which has, in turn, actively supported their aspirations.

Aeronautics employees reportedly refused to carry out the 2017 mission and company executives subsequently stepped in to fly the drone themselves. Though it’s not clear if this was deliberate or not, the drone reportedly missed the target, only injuring two ethnic Armenian fighters.

It could very well be that the executives made this decision consciously since Orbiter 1K has a so-called man-in-the-loop guidance system whereby the operator is either actively flying or otherwise monitoring the video feeds from the drone and they can see what it sees throughout the mission. This is specifically supposed to help improve accuracy since the operator can correct the course of the drone constantly and account for any movement on the part of the target. It also provides an option to abort the strike right at the last moment to avoid hitting innocent civilians or if the target is no longer reachable.