They Dropped a Robot Dog Out of a WWII Airplane. Here’s How It Worked.

If you needed proof that the Tough Stump Rodeo is unlike any other technology expo on the planet, this example is for you.

At TSR 2025, a team successfully deployed a Boston Dynamics Spot robot dog via static-line parachute for the very first time in history. It wasn’t in a lab or in a controlled facility. In the field, in Montana, from a C-47 WWII-era aircraft, in front of a live audience of operators and technology integrators from around the world.

More than a dozen systems worked in seamless coordination to pull this mission off. Here’s a full breakdown of how it happened.

ISR Insertion to a High-Value Target

The scenario: a reconnaissance team conducts a static-line parachute insertion to deploy a Boston Dynamics Spot, outfitted with long-range sensors and an integrated MANET radio system, onto a remote target area.

Once on the ground, the team remotely operated the robotic platform to gather intelligence on a High Value Target (HVT) located at a remote cabin. The ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) package collected a full suite of data and transmitted it back to a remote Operations Center in real time:

• Thermal imagery
• LiDAR scanning
• EO/IR footage
• Still photography
• Live-streamed sUAS video
• ATAK/ATOS GPS tags and PLI (Position Location Information)

Every single data stream flowed back through a MANET/ADHOC data radio network to Air Force elements staged at the Ops Center. The mission demonstrates capability and set conditions for follow-on action.

The Tech Stack: Who Made It Happen

The companies on the “X” delivered the mission. The support tech at the Operations Center made sure the world could watch it unfold.

Boston Dynamics (Spot) – The star of the show. Spot is an agile, durable, all-weather ground robot designed for unstructured urban and natural environments and now, apparently, parachute insertions.

Persistent Systems – Mobile ad hoc network (MANET) radios providing the communications backbone for voice, data, and video relay across the entire mission.

Skydio Drones – Autonomous, AI-powered, high-resolution unmanned aerial systems providing aerial overwatch and ISR support throughout the lane.

MS. Montana (C-47) – A fully operational WWII-era C-47 aircraft serving as the drop platform. Yes, they jumped a robot dog out of a piece of living history.

ATOS Tags – GPS tracking system that integrates organically into TAK via goTenna, providing real-time position data on personnel and assets throughout the mission.

goTenna – The ATAK backbone, providing mesh network connectivity and extended range communications across the entire operational area.

Why This Matters (Beyond the “Cool Factor”)

The Air Drop Lane is a proof of concept for the future of multi-domain operations. When robotics, autonomous aerial systems, MANET communications, and TAK-based command and control all operate in sync, the capability ceiling rises dramatically.

That’s the whole point of the Tough Stump Rodeo. Not demos in isolation or sales pitches on a tradeshow floor. It’s to demonstrate real systems with real integration for real results.

Want the Full Picture?

Check out the TSR 2025 Executive Summary for a complete breakdown of the Rodeo

And if what you just read makes you want to be in the field for TSR 2026, great. We’ll see you in June.