Magnificent six. US named best Russian drones

The United States has named the most promising Russian drones. The number of developments included Orion, Altius-U, Sirius, Helios, Thunder, and the Hunter. AiF.ru recalls what type of drones it is, what their capabilities are and when they will appear in service.

An article appeared in the US edition of The National Interest, the author of which reviewed six of the most promising Russian drones. & Nbsp;

First on the list is the Orion drone ('Rhythm'). The launch of serial production of these devices is scheduled for the end of this year, with export sales & mdash; for 2022. & nbsp;

Orion was created by the Kronstadt company as part of the ROC “ pacer & # 39; & # 39; under contract with the Ministry of Defense. Orion belongs to the class of long-flight medium-altitude drones. With a wingspan of over 16m and a length of 8m, Orion has a takeoff weight of 1 ton, the maximum payload of the drone is 450kg, which allows it to carry four missiles. The cruising speed is declared at 120 km/h, the maximum is unknown. The device is capable of operating at altitudes up to 7.5 km. Depending on the load and configuration, the drone can stay in the air for about a day. This device has quite high flight performance and a solid reserve of carry capacity, which makes it a good platform for placing missile and bomb weapons. & Nbsp;

A small-caliber adjustable armament was specially developed for this: the KAB-20 and KAB-50 air bombs, the UPAB-50 planning air bomb. In May, Orion carried out 38 sorties in Syria. In 17 of them it hit terrorist targets, 20 were reconnaissance, a & mdash; for other purposes. Customers overseas are already showing interest.

The second promising device included in the review is & mdash; It is an 'Altius-U' heavy drone, capable of performing a full range of reconnaissance missions. It has a large wingspan & mdash; 28 meters, & mdash; an optical-electronic reconnaissance station and a lateral radar with an array of phased active antennas. The range of the strategic reconnaissance aircraft reaches 7,000 kilometers. It has two turbodiesels and is capable of flying up to 48 hours at a cruising speed of up to 250 km/h. Its combat load reaches one ton. & Nbsp;

The third development & mdash; unmanned aerial vehicle 'Sirius' & mdash; Orion improved. It is distinguished by its large mass and size, higher speed and will receive new electronic equipment. It can perform combat missions within a radius of 1000 kilometers, the mass of the missile and the bomb charge has been increased to 300 kg. Creation of the first prototype of the new Russian attack unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Sirius will end in 2022, and its flight tests will begin the same year. & nbsp;

Sirius belongs to the class of medium altitude unmanned aerial vehicles of long flight duration. The aircraft will receive a takeoff weight of up to 2 tons, its wingspan of up to 23 meters, the flight time is expected to reach 20 hours. The declared maximum flight altitude of the drone & mdash; 7 thousand meters, the cruising speed of the device will be 180 kilometers per hour. Sirius will be powered by two turboprop engines.

The fourth on the list is Helios, which has a wingspan of 30 meters and a mass of 5 tons. Little is known about him so far. He is capable of performing various reconnaissance missions and delivering air strikes. As radar on it, most likely, a fragment of radar for an early warning aircraft will be installed. & Nbsp;

In fifth place & mdash; “ Thunder '' high speed unmanned drone. It has a combat load of 2 tons and a maximum takeoff weight of 7 tons. The device is capable of speeds of up to 1000 km/h, the radius of use in combat reaches 700 km. & Nbsp;

In one of the variants, it will be able to carry X-38 guided missiles of the “ air '' class. area. & # 39; & # 39; Thunder drone's own shock capabilities coupled with the presence of four suspension points (two under the wing consoles and two inside the fuselage). Thunder will also be able to use a wide range of weapons, especially the new 'Product 85' aircraft guided missile; and guided aerial bombs KAB-250, KAB-500. The drone can be armed with patched aerial bombs weighing up to 500 kg, as well as the highly explosive FAB-50 aerial bomb.

“ Thunder & # 39; & # 39; will be able to control a swarm, consisting of 10 small “ Lightning '' drones in the recognition and typing configurations with the possibility of changing the task for each member of the group.

In sixth position & mdash; S-70 “ Hunter '' heavy attack unmanned vehicle. It is a stealth drone capable of operating autonomously. It can work in tandem with the Su-57 fighter, however, if communication is interrupted, the drone will continue to perform combat missions on its own. Drone 'Hunter' can enter service in 2023, it is being tested.

Источник aif.ru

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