Trojan has been developed to offer the flight profiles of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. (Aeronautics)
Aeronautics has launched what it describes as a new category of unmanned aircraft – the unmanned hover plane.
The company unveiled its Trojan system on 6 June, stating that it has been developed to offer the ability to operate at extended ranges and in a hover flight profile when required.
Speaking to Janes , Matan Perry, Aeronautics Group's chief marketing officer and vice president of sales, said that Trojan had been developed following a company-led analysis of the future battlefield that coincided with feedback from operators, which highlighted several common requirements that could not be met by existing technologies.
According to Aeronautics, Trojan can operate out to 150 km and has an endurance of 2.5 hours, which Perry said can be achieved when carrying its maximum payload of 12 kg.
The aircraft combines a pusher propeller with four sets of twin rotors that provide the vertical lift necessary for the hover flight profile. The rotors are mounted at the end of arms, which extend to the rear and front of the airframe. Each arm has a rotor blade positioned above and below its tip. All of the propulsion systems are battery powered.
Perry explained that Trojan can be controlled via radio or satellite communications, and from Aeronautics multi-platform ground control station. According to the company up to four Trojan aircraft can be controlled from the GCS simultaneously.
In a press release, Aeronautics noted the system's “advanced analytics capabilities”, with Perry adding that this refers to an onboard capability whereby an intelligence ‘product' is generated from the data and imagery captured by the payloads, rather than this work being undertaken at the GCS or elsewhere.
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