Kronstadt Orion-E

The story of Kronstadt Orion-E

Unlike the U.S., Russia is struggling to find standardization and is increasingly relying on Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Several notable concepts have been developedincluding models that support VTOL (vertical take-off and landing)but few are viable in-service solutions that translate to Air Force, Army, and Navy service.

Kronstadt intends to change all that with the "Orion-E" Predator-class MALE drone, which is planned to be exhibited at MAKS 2017.

At the time of writing (2017), there is very little specific information about the Orion-E, but a flightable prototype is known to exist. The structure is said to contain composite materials for strength and as a weight-saving measure, and the system's specifications include an overall length of 26.25 feet and a wingspan of over 50 feet.

It has a maximum payload of up to 440 pounds.

Externally, the Orion-E uses a slender fuselage containing mission equipment, avionics suite, fuel depots and engine units. A blister-style optical system is mounted under the "chin" of the aircraft. This engine appears to drive a multi-blade propeller (like the Predator series) in a "propeller" arrangement at the rear of the fuselage. The main plane of the wing amidships is designed to be straight with truncated tips. In place of a traditional tail (like the Reaper drone), a V-shaped arrangement is used to double as a vertical and horizontal stabilizer.

The wheeled tricycle landing gear appears to be fixed (not retractable) during flight.

In addition to trying to secure Russia's military interests, Kronstadt will target its Orion-E to export markets with the help of a second party. The Orion E is expected to be an unarmed product for intelligence-surveillance-reconnaissance (ISR) roles on the battlefield.

Specification

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Performance

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