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Indonesian Aerospace Elang Hitam (Black Eagle)

2023 MODERN AIRCRAFT DRONE TECHNOLOGY FUTURE FLIGHT

History of Indonesian Aerospace Elang Hitam (Black Hawk)

To further differentiate the needs of the Indonesian military by purchasing solutions from abroad, in December 2019, Indonesia Aerospace presented a full-scale example of its new Unmanned Combat Air Vehicle (UCAV), the Elang Hitam ( or "Black Hawk")'). Envisioned for the most important intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR) roles and general ground attack, the drone draws much of its design form from General Atomics' proven U.S.-made Predator drone family.

In terms of design, the aircraft mimics the Predator series, with a bulbous section, a slender fuselage, a low-mounted (straight) wing mainframe and a V-tail assembly. The stern-mounted engine is also the main component of the Predator, powered by a single conventional Rotax (Austria) brand engine buried in the rear of the fuselage, driving the twin-blade propeller unit in a "thrust" fashion. This frees up the front of the fuselage to house avionics, fuel supplies and mission equipment. Ground operations are accomplished with fixed wheeled tricycle landing gear, although the aircraft is limited to prepared runways rather than unprepared sites.

The dimensions of the vehicle include a wingspan of 16 meters.

Aerospace Indonesia advertises that the UAV has a mission duration window of around 30 hours, and its payload capacity (consisting of a synthetic aperture radar sensor and appropriate ISR guidance system) is designed to be up to 30 kg. Cruising in the 145 mph range provides good platform performance for a vehicle in this class.

Control is via ground operators and satellite communications.

Notably, the model shown in December 2019 lacked any sort of "chin" or fuselage airbag to carry the typical electro-optical (EO) infrared (IR) systems found in most drones today.

For armament requirements, it is assumed that Elang Hitam will be allowed to carry anti-tank missiles (ATGMs) and precision-guided drop bombs under the wings to meet the Indonesian military's needs for attack drones. These weapons will likely be placed under the wings like the Predator.

The company will build and test-fly two prototypes during the development phase, with the first flight tentatively scheduled for sometime in 2020. Certification is planned for 2021-2023, ultimately providing the Indonesian Armed Forces with a much-needed homegrown solution.

The company already has local production experience licensed in Spain for CN-235/CN-295 tactical transport aircraft and other turboprop powered products. It also manufactures French helicopters like the "Puma" series.