Aimed at ISR Missions, Flight Tests Under Way
CIAC (the Colombian Aeronautical Industry Corporation) is focusing the attention of visitors to its booth at EXPODEFENSA 2019 this week on a model of its QUIMBAYA unmanned aerial system (UAS – ART in Spanish for Remotely Piloted Aircraft).
The aircraft is a collaborative development between the Ministry of National Defense, CIAC, Ecopetrol and the Colombian Air Force (FAC), intended for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) missions conducted by the armed forces. Development is already underway, with flight tests having started in the first half of this year.
The unmanned system has a maximum takeoff weight of 70kg, a wingspan of 5.24m, a length of 4.1 m and can carry a 12kg payload in the form of electro-optical cameras. Its range is more than 100km (110 in line of sight and up to 130 in the case of beyond line of sight) and it has a service ceiling of 3,600m and an endurance of 10 hours.
