An Airbus Capa-X UAS. (Janes/Amael Kotlarski)
Airbus unveiled its new Capa-X unmanned aircraft system (UAS) at the SOFINS 2023 exhibition, held near Bordeaux, France.
The aircraft has been designed with a modular architecture that is intended to enable it to undertake a wide range of missions, and according to Airbus, it will be able to accommodate up to three different payloads in a 10 kg-capacity internal bay. Capa-X will be reconfigurable for different operating profiles; in addition to horizontal take-off and landing via a runway, the aircraft will undertake vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) when equipped with a set of four electrically powered rotors. These form part of a VTOL twin-boom empennage that is installed in place of the standard one. Furthermore, the aircraft will have two wing options. The longer one is optimised for range and altitude, the shorter onefor low-speed manoeuvrability and to support hover flight.
Capa-X is configured with a pusher propeller that is powered by an internal combustion engine. It will have a ceiling of 3,000 m (9,642 ft) and achieve a maximum speed of 81 kt (150 km/h) according to Airbus. The aircraft's operating weight is stated as between 75 kg and in excess of 100 kg, depending on the payload, wing, and propulsion configurations. As standard, the Capa-X will be controlled via a beyond-line-of-sight datalink, but Airbus representatives told Janes that a satellite communication system is being examined.
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