NASA's Ingenuity helicopter is preparing for the first-ever powered flight on another planet The ultra-light aircraft was on board the Perseverance rover when it landed on Mars in February. By AFP Sunday 4 Apr 2021, 7:12 PM 1 hour ago 4,903 Views 11 Comments NASA’S INGENUITY MINI-HELICOPTER has been dropped on the surface of Mars in preparation for its first flight, the US space agency said. The ultra-light aircraft had been fixed to the belly of the Perseverance rover, which touched down on the Red Planet on 18 February . “MarsHelicopter touchdown confirmed!” NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory tweeted Saturday. #MarsHelicopter touchdown confirmed! Its 293 million mile (471 million km) journey aboard @NASAPersevere ended with the final drop of 4 inches (10 cm) from the rover's belly to the surface of Mars today. Next milestone? Survive the night. https://t.co/TNCdXWcKWEpic.twitter.com/XaBiSNebua— NASA JPL (@NASAJPL) April 4, 2021