Observers have speculated that it’s part of BlackSky’s Gen-3 satellite constellation, which it built for the US military for Earth imaging at a jaw-dropping resolution
Gen-3 satellites are designed to image individual pixels at a resolution of 50 centimeters, providing detailed clarity of the Earth’s surface. These were developed under a 2020 contract for the US military, with launches beginning in 2022.
Just guessing, but it sounds like it could be the regenerative braking. More power is now coming from the electric, which will tend to run down the battery too quickly, so maybe they’re trying something new to try and charge the battery faster.
A lot of those drones are prop driven jobs & not very fast. Attack helicopters could shoot them down fairly easily, I would think. I don’t know how stealthy they are though. They may be difficult to pick up on radar, especially if flying low.