MOSCOW. Sept 20 (Interfax-AVN) - The Luch Design Bureau (based in Rybinsk, Yaroslavl region) will be testing a medium-range unmanned aerial reconnaissance vehicle called Prokhodchik this year, a source from the defense industry told Interfax-AVN on Wednesday.
"This year the company will start the final tests of the new Prokhodchik medium-range unmanned vehicle with an increased flight duration," the source said.
The ground facilities and several unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) weighing about 500 kilograms are ready for work, he said. Drones will take off as airplanes and will stay in mid-air between 12 and 18 hours. Vehicles will be able to reach a flight range of up to 1,600 kilometers at an altitude of up to 6,000 meters with a speed between 130 and 270 kilometers per hour.
The UAV will pass on-board data at a rate of 34 megabits per second. The vehicle could be fitted with a lateral scanning locator or high resolution cameras, the engineer said.
Prokhodchik will be used for national defense purposes in long-distance reconnaissance missions.