Page 7 - ADT NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2022 Online Magazine

part of a swarm of up to 16 drones on a mission.

NEW PLAYERS IN THE MARKET

As interest grows in nano drones, more compa-
nies are entering the market. Turkish defence
giant Aselsan is currently working on Turkey’s
first flapping-wing nano UAV. Currently in the
research and development (R&D) phase, the
drone is shaped like an insect and will be used
in search and rescue missions, to spy on enemy
territory, and for other operations in dangerous
environments.

Meanwhile, Doot MK-I, a nano UAV designed
for intelligence, surveillance and reconnais-
sance (ISR) and developed by Indian Defence
Reforms (IDR), has undergone initial tests by
India’s National Security Guard (NSG). The
Rashtriya Rifles, a counter-insurgency force
under the Indian Army, and the Central Reserve
Police Force (CRPF) are also interested in test-
ing the drone, according to company officials.
Doot MK-I has a weight of 200 gm, maximum
speed of 80 km/h, and an endurance of 30 min-
utes. Capable of carrying out both indoor and
outdoor missions, Doot MK-I uses artificial intel-
ligence (AI) and is capable of detecting more
than 80 objects, including humans, weapons,
© FLIR
and military vehicles. Worried by the pace of
growth of the Chinese military, Japan and India
deploys within two minutes, ranges up to 12 km, and is capable of are planning to acquire more micro and nano
withstanding extreme weather conditions. Northrop Grumman’s UAVs in the near future.
Bat family product line features both 12 foot- and 14 foot-wingspan
drones; the company has flown and deployed various mission pay- Another company hoping to capitalize on a
loads, including ISR and EW, using the Bat UAS. Raytheon has the growing market is Nigeria’s Proforce, a com-
Coyote, a micro UAS capable of operating in autonomous swarms; pany that specialises in the manufacture of
the drone is widely used by the Army and U.S. Air Force for ISR mis- armoured vehicles. The company has signed
sions. Elbit Systems’ MAGNI, which is designed for delivering day/ an agreement with France’s Aeraccess for the
night, 3D real-time intelligence, is a fully foldable device equipped production of UAVs; among the UAVs produced
with dual S-band and LTE communications. The drone weighs around by the French company is the HawkEye Mk 1
2.5 kg, ranges up to 3 km, and has an operational speed of up to nano UAV and the Hawker Q800X quadrotor.
40 kph. Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has the Hovermast 100, an
electrically powered drone used for real-time ISR.
ATTRACTING ATTENTION
CHINA MOVES AHEAD
In February this year, U.S. drone manufac-
Besides investing heavily in swarms of combat UAVs, China has also turer Skydio announced that the U.S. Army has
developed a micro drone that it believes is a slightly bigger but better selected its system, Skydio X2D, for its Short-
version of the Black Hornet Nano. Named Fengniao, or Hummingbird, Range Reconnaissance (SRR) Programme
the drone , built by privately owned Huaqing Innovation, is 17cm of Record that aims to equip soldiers with a
long and weighs 35 grams. According to the company, the UAV is rapidly deployable small UAS solution to con-
capable of transmitting high-definition images or real-time footage duct Reconnaissance and Surveillance (R&S)
over a distance of more than 2km. The Fengniao , which is capable activities. According to the company, Skydio
of transmitting images 400 metres further than the Black Hornet, X2D, which is capable of both day and night
has laser sensors on four sides to help it detect and avoid obstacles. operations, provides up to 35 min of flight time
As it supports networking data links, the Fengniao can be used as on a single battery. The system pairs Skydio
ASIAN DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY NOVEMBER-DECEMBER 2022 | 7