UAV - SAAB Skeldar selger

Saab gets first order for unmanned Skeldar

• PrintBy:   CRAIG HOYLE LONDON

11:31 11 Jul 2013 

Source: 

 

Saab has secured a first customer for its Skeldar vertical take-off
and landing unmanned air system, with the type to be 
employed in a maritime surveillance role.

Announcing its receipt of the contract on 11 July, the Swedish
company says the "Skeldar UAS will be operationally deployed
with the customer before the end of this year and will be used
in naval operations where the benefits of a vertical take-off and
anding UAS are most prominent".

Further details about the launch user and number of systems to be
supplied have not been disclosed. "The industry's nature is such
that information regarding the customer will not be announced,"
the company says.

Saab's head of aeronautics, Lennart Sindahl, cites the Skeldar's
"flight performance, heavy fuel engine and easy-to-maintain design"
as key factors in securing the sale. According to company
information, the unmanned rotorcraft has a maximum take-off
weight of more than 200kg (440lb), including a sensor payload
totalling up to 40kg, and offers a 5h flight endurance.

Developed and tested during the last several years, the maritime
version of the Skeldar can carry a range of payloads, including an
electro-optical/infrared sensor and automatic identification system
equipment to monitor the activities of surface ships.