Russia’s Okhotnik UCAV Tests Air-To-Air Missiles

For the first time, the Russian military conducted a series of flights of a heavy attack drone “Okhotnik” in the form of a fighter-interceptor with simulated air-to-air missiles at the Ashuluk training ground, a source in the military-industrial complex told RIA Novosti.

Prior to this, the “Okhotnik” had already performed a number of flights, but in the course of them only its flight qualities and the operation of the main onboard systems were assessed.

“From the strip of the military airfield of the Center for Combat Training and Combat Use of the Russian Aerospace Forces at the Ashuluk training ground, several flights of the Hunter were performed with functional simulators of guided air-to-air missiles. Such missiles in the combat version are designed to destroy other aircraft,”

the source said agencies, noting that the tests were recent.

The source explained that the flights performed “will make it possible to assess the coupling of the drone’s avionics with missile guidance systems and the lead Su-57 aircraft .”

According to the interlocutor, simulators of missiles with infrared and radar homing heads were used on the Okhotnik.
“The simulators have the body and all the electronic stuffing of the corresponding missile, but they lack the engine and warhead,” the source said.
The Okhotnik, developed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau , is to become the first heavy drone with strike functions in the Russian Aerospace Forces. The device is made according to the “flying wing” scheme with the use of materials that reduce the radar signature.
According to open sources, the strike UAV has a length of 19 meters, a wingspan of 14 meters, its take-off weight is 20 tons, and its maximum speed is about 1000 kilometers per hour. The first flight of the Hunter took place on August 3 and lasted more than 20 minutes.

Source: RIA Novosti

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *