International Battlefield UAVs (1)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Battlefield UAVs are now in use or development all over the world. This chapter discusses battlefield UAV developments in Israel, Canada, and France.
[edit] Origins of Israeli Battlefield UAVs
The Israelis were the prime movers in establishing the battlefield UAV as a standard military weapon. After the Yom Kippur War in the Middle East in 1972, when the Israelis suffered substantial air losses from Soviet built SAMs fired by Arab forces, the Israeli military searched for new technology to ensure they would not have the same problems in the future. This led them to cross paths with Alvin Ellis, who had been born and raised in the US and haf worked for Ryan on the Firebee and the Lightning Bugs. He emigrated to Israel in 1967 to join Israel Aircraft Industries and work on the Kfir fighter, a derivative of the French Dassault Mirage fighter but fitted with an American GE J79 engine.
The history of Ellis and the battlefield UAV tends to recall that of Reginald Denny and the target drone. Ellis liked to tinker with RC models, and after the Yom Kippur War he decided that a small drone with a TV camera might be an answer to some of Israeli's battlefield needs. He joined up with an IAI colleague named Yehuda Manor and the two put together a prototype in Manor's garage. They flew the prototype for a short time, but it crashed when one of its two engines failed. Ellis still felt the idea was good and pitched it to IAI management, but they turned him down. Undiscouraged, Ellis took the idea to Tadiran, the Israeli electronics conglomerate, and they funded a second prototype.
The prototype flew in 1973. It was just a large hobbyist's RC airplane, similar in configuration to Reginald Denny's early Radioplane drones. The new prototype was successful and led to a demonstrator named the "Owl" that was fitted with a cheap TV camera. It was demonstrated to Tadiran and military brass in early 1974. Tadiran management was sold on the idea and gave Ellis a contract to develop an operational system named "Mastiff". The Mastiff had a different configuration from the early prototypes, featuring the pusher-propeller twin-boom configuration that would become common for combat surveillance UAVs. The Mastiff was introduced in 1975, but nobody seemed interested.
Ellis did a stint back in the US in the late 1970s working on drone autopilots for American companies, while the Mastiff gathered dust. Only two were sold by 1979. The lack of activity was deceptive. The Israeli military was becoming increasingly interested in battlefield UAVs, and in response IAI management finally decided they were interested in the concept as well. Tadiran and IAI found themselves in bitter competition for military battlefield UAV contracts. The Israeli military began to buy more Mastiffs, while IAI came up with a competitor with the appropriate name of "Scout" and sold it to the military as well. The Scout, also known as "Zahavan (Oriole)", had a similar configuration to the Mastiff, with a pusher propeller and a twin-boom tail.
In June 1982, the Israelis began major military operations in Lebanon, where they were confronted by Syrian SAMs, which were heavily sited in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley. All 28 SAM sites in the Bekaa were destroyed, however, partly through the use of Sampson decoys to get them to reveal their presence, and partly through reconnaissance information obtained by the Mastiff and Scout UAVs.
- Israeli battlefield UAVs had proven a great success, and soon came to the attention of the US military, particularly after the American intervention in Lebanon in 1983. This led to the US Navy's request for a battlefield UAV in 1984, and Tadiran and IAI decided, or were told to, join forces to submit a proposal for the American requirement. The result was an IAI division named "Mazlat", now "Malat".
The US military is reluctant to buy from foreign sources, so foreign companies always team up with an American company to push a sale. AAI had already worked with Tadiran to sell the Mastiff in the US, so AAI was a logical choice, and Mazlat and AAI developed the Pioneer, which won the competition. Since then, Malat has developed more advanced battlefield UAVs, and has collaborated on battlefield UAV developments with partners such as AAI.
[edit] Israeli UAVs: Mastiff, Scout, and Searcher series
| IAI MALAT MASTIFF | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 37 kilograms | 81 pounds |
| Length | 3.3 meters | 10 feet 10 inches |
| Wingspan | 4.25 meters | 13 feet 11 inches |
| Height | 0.89 meters | 2 feet 11 inches |
| Empty weight | 72 kilograms | |
| Launch weight | 138 kilograms | 304 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 185 km/h | 115 mph / 100 knot |
| Service ceiling | 4,480 meters | 14,700 feet |
| Endurance | 7.5 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Runway or hydraulic catapult. | |
| Recovery scheme | Runway, parachute, or net | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| IAI MALAT SCOUT | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 38 kilograms | 84 pounds |
| Length | 3.68 meters | 12 feet 1 inches |
| Wingspan | 4.96 meters | 16 feet 3 inches |
| Height | 0.94 meters | 3 feet 1 inch |
| Empty weight | 96 kilograms | 211 pounds |
| Launch weight | 159 kilograms | 350 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 176 km/h | 109 mph / 95 knot |
| Service ceiling | 4,575 meters | 15,000 feet |
| Endurance | 7.5 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Runway or hydraulic catapult. | |
| Recovery scheme | Runway, parachute, or net. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| IAI MALAT SEARCHER | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 68 kilograms | 150 pounds |
| Length | 5.1 meters | 16 feet 8 inches |
| Wingspan | 7.65 meters | 25 feet 1 inch |
| Height | 1.25 meters | 4 feet 1 inch |
| Launch weight | 400 kilograms | 880 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 200 km/h | 125 mph / 110 knot |
| Service ceiling | 5,180 meters | 17,000 feet |
| Endurance | 12 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Runway or RATO booster. | |
| Recovery scheme | Runway, parachute, or net. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| IAI MALAT SEARCHER II | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 68 kilograms | 150 pounds |
| Length | 5.85 meters | 19 feet 2 inches |
| Wingspan | 8.54 meters | 28 feet |
| Height | 1.25 meters | 4 feet 1 inch |
| Launch weight | 500 kilograms | 1,100 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 200 km/h | 125 mph / 110 knot |
| Service ceiling | 6,100 meters | 20,000 feet |
| Endurance | 18 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Runway or RATO booster. | |
| Recovery scheme | Runway, parachute, or net. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
After consolidating production of the Mastiff and Scout, the Malat company continued to sell them in slightly refined versions for over a decade. Both aircraft have fixed landing gear and are generally operated from runways, performing short landings using an arresting-wire hook, though they may be launched using a hydraulic catapult off the back of a truck, and recovered by a net. They both carry imaging sensors in a turret underneath the fuselage.
The Mastiff and Scout remained in service with the Israeli Army until the early 1990s, when they were replaced by the Malat Searcher, also known as the "Meyromit (High Flier)". The Searcher looks almost identical to the Scout and Pioneer, but is scaled up, and in fact is well over twice the size of the Scout. The Searcher is powered by a 35 kW (47 hp) piston engine. It not only features updated avionics and sensor systems as well as greater endurance, but increased redundancy to improve survivability.
The Israelis are now using the further improved "Searcher II", yet another scale-up of the basic Scout design with improved endurance.
The Israelis have considered means of silencing the UAVs' engines, whose chain-saw sound often tips off adversaries to the fact that they are being observed.
[edit] Israeli UAVs: Eye-View and Harpy
| IAI MALAT EYE-VIEW | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 13.6 kilograms | 30 pounds |
| Length | 2.9 meters | 9 feet 6 inches |
| Wingspan | 3.96 meters | 13 feet |
| Launch weight | 104 kilograms | 230 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 185 km/h | 115 mph / 100 knot |
| Service ceiling | 1,525 meters | 5,000 feet |
| Endurance | > 6 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Runway or hydraulic catapult. | |
| Recovery scheme | Runway, parachute, or net. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
While Malat has been moving towards bigger and bigger battlefield UAVs, they have also been exploring the lower end of the range, with an interesting aircraft known as the "Eye-View". Like its larger relatives, the Eye-View has fixed landing gear and a pusher propeller, with an 18.6 kW (25 hp) piston engine. It has a unique arrangement, with a tail-boom mounted on the top rear of the fuselage that ends in an "inverted vee" tail. The Eye-View is also being promoted in civilian markets for forest-fire warning, and in this form is appropriately known as the "FireBird".
The MBD missile division of IAI sells another UAV, the "Harpy", which is an antiradar loitering attack drone. It patrols over a battlefield, waiting for somebody to turn on a radar, and then dives into it, destroying it with a blast-fragmentation warhead. The Harpy is in service with the Israeli Defense Forces, as well as Turkey, India, China, Taiwan, and the Republic of Korea.
The Harpy is a delta-winged machine with finlets on the wingtips. It weighs 135 kilograms (300 pounds), and is 2.7 meters (8 feet 10 inches) long with a span of 2.1 meters (6 feet 10 inches). It is powered by a UAV Engines Limited (UEL) AR731 rotary engine, with 28 kW (37 hp), driving a pusher propeller. Maximum speed is roughly 185 km/h (115 mph / 100 knots), and endurance is about six hours. Although the Harpy is clearly different in appearance to the Boeing BRAVE 200, the two UAVs are conceptually similar in many ways, and the Harpy has a similar launch scheme. 18 Harpies are carried by a truck, with each UAV in its own sealed container. Three trucks make up a battery, which also includes a mission control center.
A Harpy can be fueled, programmed, and tested inside its container, which is then opened for launch by RATO booster. After launch, it makes its way to its patrol area, following navigational waypoints provided by the command center, and then flies circuits, waiting for a radar to turn on. On finding a radar, it dives into it almost vertically, detonating before impact to ensure maximum damage to the radar site. If the radar is turned off and the Harpy loses target lock, the UAV returns to its patrol. If no radar is spotted by the time the Harpy is running low on fuel, the UAV will self-destruct.
[edit] Israeli UAVs: Sniper, Micro-V, and Hermes 180
| SILVER ARROW SNIPER | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 25 kilograms | 55 pounds |
| Length | 3.8 meters | 12 feet 6 inches |
| Wingspan | 5.2 meters | 17 feet |
| Launch weight | 155 kilograms | 342 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 175 km/h | 110 mph / 95 knot |
| Service ceiling | 4,575 meters | 15,000 feet |
| Endurance | > 6 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Runway or RATO booster. | |
| Recovery scheme | Runway or parachute. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| SILVER ARROW MICRO-V | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager. | |
| Payload weight | 8,2 kilograms | 18 pounds |
| Length | 2.74 meters | 9 feet |
| Wingspan | 12 feet | |
| Launch weight | 50 kilograms | 110 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 185 km/h | 115 mph / 100 knot |
| Service ceiling | 4,570 meters | 15,000 feet |
| Endurance | 5 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Bungee catapult. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
Another Israeli firm, Silver Arrow, a collaboration between Elbit and Federmann Enterprises, focuses on selling large UAVs, but also sells two small battlefield UAVs, including the "Sniper" and the "Micro-V".
The Sniper's configuration resembles that of a conventional private aircraft with fixed tricycle landing gear, driven by a nose-mounted propeller and a 28.5 kW (38 horsepower) piston engine. Its only unusual feature is an upright vee tail.
The Micro-V is a neat little mini-UAV, powered by twin 3 kW (4 horsepower) piston engines, one in a nacelle on each wing driving a pusher propeller. It has no landing gear. The Micro-V appears to be too small to carry a full sensor turret, carrying a miniaturized imager in a transparent section built into the middle of its fuselage.
In the fall of 2002, Silver Arrow announced a new "high-end" tactical UAV, the "Hermes 180". It is a piston-powered machine with a pusher prop. Instead of having a twin-boom tail as do many other UAVs in its class, the Hermes 180 has single boom perched on top of the fuselage on struts, ending in a twin-fin tail. Sensor payloads are carried in a turret under the middle of the fuselage. The Hermes 180 can operate at up to 4,575 meters (15,000 feet) in line of sight to its ground station, and has an endurance of more than 10 hours.
[edit] Canadian UAVs: Canadair CL-89, CL-289
| CANADAIR CL-89 | ||
| Payload | Day / night camera. | |
| Length | 2.6 meterslength2=8 feet 6 inches | |
| Wingspan | 0.94 meters | 3 feet 1 inch |
| Launch weight | 108 kilograms | 238 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 740 km/h | 460 mph / 400 knot |
| Launch scheme | RATO booster. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute with airbags. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| CANADAIR CL-289 | ||
| Payload | Day / night camera. | |
| Length | 3.61 meters | 11 feet 10 inches |
| Wingspan | 1.32 meters | 4 feet 4 inches |
| Launch weight | 220 kilograms | 485 pounds |
| Cruising speed | 720 km/h | 450 mph / 390 knot |
| Endurance | 40 minutes | |
| Launch scheme | RATO booster. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute with airbags. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
The Canadians have proven enthusiastic about battlefield UAVs, and in fact have been in the business since the early 1960s. In 1961, Canadair LTD, now part of the Canadian Bombardier group, began development of a battlefield UAV that was eventually designated "CL-89" or "AN/USD-501". The requirements specified a rugged UAV that would be easy to use under battlefield conditions, highly survivable in a combat environment, and provide intelligence day or night in any weather in a timely fashion. Initially, the project was funded by both the Canadian and British governments, but in 1965 West Germany joined in the effort as well. Flight testing began in 1964 with cooperation with the US at the US Army proving grounds in Yuma, Arizona. Initial orders and production for the CL-89 did not begin until the early 1970s. Several hundred were ordered.
The CL-89 looked more like a missile than a UAV, with a torpedo-like fuselage, rectangular cruciform wings, and small triangular cruciform control fins on the nose. It was powered by a Williams Research WR2-6 turbojet engine with 559 N (57 kgp / 125 lbf) thrust fed by twin inlets on each side of the fuselage between the wings.
The CL-89 was launched on a rail from a truck using a RATO booster rocket attached to the vehicle's tail, with the booster rocket providing 20.2 kN (2,065 kgp / 4,550 lbf) thrust for 2.5 seconds. The CL-89 then continued on a preprogrammed course, performing its observations and returning to the recovery site, assisted by a homing beacon. Once at the recovery site, the UAV deployed a drogue chute to slow down, and then popped out a parachute and two airbags for a soft landing. Two of the wings folded back when the airbags deployed to ensure that they weren't damaged on touchdown.
The CL-89 had a modular design, with plug-in packs for the two airbags, a dispenser for illumination flares, the parachute system, and the sensor system. Sensor systems included a Zeiss optical camera pack and a Hawker-Siddeley infrared camera pack. The CL-89 apparently saw limited service with Canadian, British, and German forces, with the British Army using it in combat during the Gulf War in 1991.
The CL-89 led to an improved version, the "CL-289" or "AN/USD-502", developed as a collaborative program between Canada, France, and West Germany. The UAV was built by Canadair. It was integrated for German operations by Dornier, and for French operations by Aerospatiale. It went into service with West German forces in 1990 and with French forces in 1992. A few CL-289s that were excess to German needs were later sold to the French. The CL-289 is very similar to the CL-89 but slightly larger, with the most visible difference being that the wings of the CL-289 have a leading-edge sweep, and are not rectangular like those of the CL-89.
The CL-289 can be fitted with a Zeiss camera pack or a French SAT Corsaire infrared imager that can relay real-time imagery to a ground control station. It has now been upgraded with GPS navigation capabilities and a modernized mission planning and control system. Several European companies have collaborated to develop a miniature SAR all-weather sensor pack for the CL-289, but it does not appear to have been fielded yet. Digital optical imaging packs are being considered.
During the 1990s, the German Army deployed CL-289s to support operations in the former Yugoslavia, seeing combat action during the Kosovo air campaign in the spring of 1999. During this operation, the Germans fielded 18 CL-289s from a launch site in Macedonia, with three being lost, presumably to Yugoslav air defenses. The Germans hope to keep their CL-289s in service until at least 2013.
The CL-289s were flown at altitudes from 200 to 1,000 meters (660 to 3,300 feet), over preprogrammed routes up to 400 kilometers (250 miles) long, with the missions lasting 30 to 40 minutes. The CL-289s could provide real-time video back to the control stations as long as they remained in line of sight, and then they took images on conventional or infrared film. The French also operated their CL-289s over the former Yugoslavia and in the intervention in Afghanistan in 2001:2002.
In the summer of 2002, the Italian Army decided to buy 20 CL-289s, along with a mission control center and two launchers, to support the Italian military commitment to the new European Union Rapid Reaction Force. The CL-289s were intended to be an interim solution until a more modern UAV could be obtained.
[edit] Canadian UAVs: Canadair CL-227, CL-327, CL-427
| CANADAIR CL-327 | ||
| Payload | Day / night camera. | |
| Length | 1.83 meters | 6 feet |
| Rotor span | 4 meters | 13 feet 1 inches |
| Launch weight | 350 kilograms | 770 pounds |
| Cruising speed | 157 km/h | 98 mph / 85 knot |
| Ceiling | 18,000 feet | |
| Endurance | 6.25 hours | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with GPS and radio backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
The Canadians also developed a helicopter-type battlefield UAV, the Canadair "CL-227". The CL-227 features a body resembling a peanut in shell stood on end, with coaxial rotors around the midbody and a sensor turret on the bottom. Unsurprisingly, it is nicknamed the "Peanut". It has a ring-shaped landing skid around its base, and can be operated as a free-flying or tethered drone.
The initial prototype of the CL-227 was powered by a Wankel rotary engine and first flew in 1978. The second prototype was powered by a Williams Research WR-34-15 turboshaft engine with 24 kW (32 shp), and first flew in 1981. After demonstration to various military services, Canadair began full-scale development of the Peanut in 1984, with operational introduction at the end of the decade.
The CL-227 was followed by a refined design, the Bombardier "CL-327", which was introduced in 1996. It is similar to the Peanut, but looks like two mushrooms joined stem-to-stem. It is powered by a Williams Research WTS-117-5 turboshaft engine with 94 kW (125 shp). It has GPS-INS location capability and a programmable waypoint autopilot system.
Two CL-327s can be carried and operated by a single HUMVEE light field truck or similar vehicle. The CL-327 was evaluated by the US Navy for the VT-UAV competition, but lost the competition. Bombardier is now promoting a still further improved version of the UAV, the "CL-427 Puma", with the same configuration but with the mushroom-shaped enclosures replaced by "weathervane" shaped fairings.
[edit] French UAVs: Mart, Crecerelle, & Sperwer
| ALTEC MART II | ||
| Payload | Imaging system. | |
| Length | 3.2 meters | 10 feet 7 inches |
| Wingspan | 3.4 meters | 11 feet 2 inches |
| Launch weight | 110 kilograms | 242 pounds |
| Speed | 195 km/h | 120 mph / 140 knot |
| Ceiling | 3,050 meters | 10,000 feet |
| Endurance | 4 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Catapult launch. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute with airbags. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| SAGEM CRECERELLE | ||
| Payload | Day / night camera in nose turret. | |
| Length | 2.4 meters | 7 feet 11 inches |
| Wingspan | 3.3 meters | 10 feet 10 inches |
| Height | 0.7 meters | 2 feet 4 inches |
| Launch weight | 120 kilograms | |
| Speed | 240 km/h | 150 mph / 130 knot |
| Ceiling | 3,050 meters | 10,000 feet |
| Endurance | 5 hours | |
| Launch scheme | RATO booster. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute with airbags. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with GPS and radio control. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| SAGEM SPERWER | ||
| Payload | Day-night EO imagers in nose turret. | |
| Length | 2.7 meters | 8 feet 10 inches |
| Wingspan | 4.3 meters | 14 feet 1 inch |
| Launch weight | 320 kilograms | 705 pounds |
| Speed | 240 km/h | 150 mph / 130 knot |
| Ceiling | 5,000 meters | 16,400 feet |
| Endurance | 5 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Pneumatic catapult. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute with airbags. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with GPS and radio control. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
The French operate the CL-289 and the Israeli Hunter, as well as a number of French-designed UAVs. One of the earliest was the Altec "Mini-Avion de Reconnaissance Telepilote (MART)" series, with the MART II serving with French forces in the Gulf War. Details of the MART II are difficult to find, but pictures of it show it to be a relatively small tactical UAV, with a simple conventional configuration like that of a large RC model. It is catapult-launched, carries an imaging system, and appears to be recovered by parachute.
Altec is now selling an improved version of the MART II, the "S-MART". It is slightly heavier, has 7 hours endurance, and can carry ELINT and jamming payloads.
The French Sagem firm also produced a medium-sized UAV, derived from the popular Meggitt Banshee target, known as the "Crecerelle" ("Kestrel" or "Sparrowhawk"). Its configuration is much like that of the Banshee, with a pusher prop, a clipped delta wing, and a single tailfin, though its fuselage is more cylindrical. It is powered by a 20 kW (26 hp) rotary engine and has no landing gear, being recovered by parachute and airbags. The Crecerelle saw action with French forces during the Kosovo campaign in 1999. Meggitt sells much the same machine as the "Spectre".
SAGEM is now selling an improved version of the Crecerelle named the "Sperwer", and it is being operated by the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, France, and Greece. The Swedes call it the "Ugglan (Owl)". Like the Crecerelle, it uses a pusher propeller and has clipped delta wings, but it is larger, has twin tailfins, a boxier fuselage, and an EO sensor turret under the nose. It is powered by a 29.5 kW (65 hp) two-stroke Rotax engine.
Sagem has sold well over a hundred Crecerelles and Sperwers. Canada is the latest customer for the Sperwer, obtaining a system of four low-end UAVs during the summer of 2003 for use by Canadian forces in Afghanistan. The Canadians expect to buy more and use the type over the long term. Apparently Germany is obtaining the Sperwer as well.
Sagem is now working on a next-generation "Sperwer High Velocity (HV)", which is an entirely new UAV that is powered by a Microturbo TFS-18 engine, and has a sleek boxy fuselage with rear forward-swept wings, forward canards, and a dorsal air intake. Sagem is seeking French government backing for full development, and hopes to have the new UAV flying as early as 2005 or 2006.
Matra BAE Dynamics developed a UAV named "Dragon", no relation to the BAI Dragon. The Dragon was roughly the same size as and similar to the Crecerelle, with the same pusher-prop delta configuration, except that instead of having a single tailfin mounted on the fuselage, the Dragon had a tailfin on each wingtip. It was intended as a jamming platform. It seems to have dropped out of sight, possibly because the French Army acquired the Crecerelle for the jamming mission.
[edit] French UAVs: Fox, K100, Heliot, & Vigilant
| CAC SYSTEMES FOX-TX | ||
| Payload | Jammer, SIGINT, radar-seeker warhead. | |
| Payload weight | 30 kilograms | 66 pounds |
| Length | 2.75 meters | 9 feet |
| Wingspan | 4 meters | 13 feet 1 inch |
| Empty weight | 73 kilograms | 161 pounds |
| Launch weight | 135 kilograms | 298 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 180 km/h | 112 mph / 97 knot |
| Service ceiling | 3,000 meters | 9,800 feet |
| Endurance | 5 hours | |
| Launch scheme | Pneumatic or bungee catapult. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute with airbags. | |
| Guidance system | Autopilot with GPS and radio control. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| CAC SYSTEMES K100 | ||
| Payload | Day / night imager, warhead with seeker | |
| Payload weight | 5 kilograms | 11 pounds |
| Length | 1.5 meters | 4 feet 11 inches |
| Wingspan | 2.6 meters | 8 feet 6 inches |
| Empty weight | 23 kilograms | 47 pounds |
| Launch weight | 28 kilograms | 62 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 234 km/h | 145 mph / 126 knot |
| Endurance | 30 minutes | |
| Launch scheme | RATO booster off ramp. | |
| Recovery scheme | Parachute or skid landing. | |
| Guidance system | Programmable with GPS, radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| CAC SYSTEMES HELIOT | ||
| Payload | Imagers, EW, countermeasures, etc. | |
| Payload weight | 120 kilograms | 265 pounds |
| Length | 6 meters | 19 feet 8 inches |
| Rotor diameter | 6.7 meters | 22 feet |
| Empty weight | 230 kilograms | 507 pounds |
| Launch weight | 450 kilograms | 992 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 126 km/h | 78 mph / 68 knot |
| Service ceiling | 3,000 meters | 9,850 feet |
| Endurance | 2 hours 30 minutes | |
| Guidance system | Programmable with GPS, radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
| TECHNO-SUD VIGILANT | ||
| Payload | Imagers and custom payloads. | |
| Length | 2.3 meters | 7 feet 6 inches |
| Rotor diameter | 1.83 meters | 6 feet |
| Launch weight | 40 kilograms | 88 pounds |
| Maximum speed | 97 km/h | 60 mph / 52 knot |
| Service ceiling | 1,830 meters | 6,000 feet |
| Endurance | 1 hour | |
| Guidance system | Programmable with radio control backup. | |
| Unmanned aerial vehicle | ||
CAC Systems of France, discussed earlier as a manufacturer of aerial targets, also produces a number of different battlefield UAVs, including the "Fox" series, the "K100", and the "Heliot" UAV helicopter, as well as the Aerovironment Pointer, built under license.
The Fox is a mini-UAV powered by a 16 kW (22 hp) piston engine. About a thousand have been sold in a number of variants, with generally similar appearance and specifications. Specifications for the electronic warfare-variant, the "Fox-TX", are as follows:
The Fox-TX can carry a variety of payloads for radar or radio communications jamming; radar identification and location; communications intercept; or, when fitted with a warhead and a radar-homing seeker, anti-radar attack. The Fox-TX can also carry two small underwing stores. Other Fox variants include:
Fox-AT1: Short range battlefield reconnaissance variant. The Fox-AT1 has a shorter wingspan of 3.6 meters (11 feet 10 inches); a deeper fuselage; and a sensor payload of 15 kilograms (33 pounds), consisting of day or night imaging systems, chemical sensors, or customer-specified payload.
Unlike the Fox-TX, the Fox-AT1 has a skid to permit belly landings. It can carry four small underwing stores. Endurance is only an hour and a half. French forces have used the Fox-AT1 for tactical reconnaissance in the Balkans.
Fox-AT2: Long range battlefield reconnaissance variant. The Fox-AT2 looks much like the Fox-AT1, but has the wider 4-meter wingspan. It can carry a heavier sensor payload of 30 kilograms (66 pounds), but only two wings stores, and uses a long-range radio communications link.
Fox-TS1: Expendable target, with the short 3.6 meter wingspan. It can carry chaff, flares, radar enhancement devices, and other target gear.
The CAC Systemes K100 is a mini-UAV. The company sells a reconnaissance variant, the "K100/R", and an antiradar loitering attack variant, the "K100/A". The K100 is of conventional aircraft configuration, except for an upright vee tail and a pusher propeller. It has no landing gear.
The CAC Systemes Heliot is a small two-seat helicopter that can be piloted or operated as a UAV for reconnaissance or decoy missions. It is also used as a target drone. The Heliot is of conventional main-tail rotor configuration and is powered by a Hirth piston engine with 79 kW (105 hp). It has a large payload capacity, and CAC Systemes advertises it for use with a wide range of standard or customer-supplied payloads for reconnaissance, electronic warfare, or training.
The Techno-Sud Vigilant is another French mini-UAV. It is a small unpiloted helicopter of conventional main-tail rotor configuration, and powered by a 9 kW (12 hp) two-stroke engine. The Vigilant is marketed by Thales, and is being sold to both military and civilian users. Civilian users have accounted for the bulk of sales, using it for applications such as security or environmental monitoring.
[edit] References
This article contains material that originally came from the web article Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by Greg Goebel, which exists in the Public Domain.
