The Novel Air Concept is a "Capability Vision", an initiative of the British Ministry of Defence

Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom)

The Ministry of Defence is the United Kingdom government department responsible for implementation of government defence policy and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces....

 to stimulate innovative solutions to long-term defence challenges that may lead to a future capability. This concept, announced in 2009, is for an autonomous UAV

Unmanned aerial vehicle

An unmanned aerial vehicle , also known as a unmanned aircraft system , remotely piloted aircraft or unmanned aircraft, is a machine which functions either by the remote control of a navigator or pilot or autonomously, that is, as a self-directing entity...

which would be able to hover like a helicopter or fold its rotor blades and fly as an aeroplane. The NAC would be able to operate within "urban canyons" and be a test platform for new weapons such as microwave or laser guns.

Specification

The MoD stats the Novel Air Concept will be "a reusable uninhabitied air system with a radius of action of 1000km and able to survive defended air space. Capable of being launched and recovered from land sea and air with the emphasis on ship based operations. The vehicle is to be able to operate within the urban canyons inherent in the major city landscape."