Kamikaze drones are an ever-increasing threat and have gained the status of an indispensable weapon for high-intensity combat operations on the Ukrainian front. They successfully attack armoured vehicles, artillery systems and even individual soldiers on both sides of the conflict. However, for all their undeniable advantages, drones have their drawbacks, the main ones being their limited range and dependence on a communication signal from the operator.
To solve the first problem, engineers are working on equipping barrage munitions with elements of artificial intelligence, a good example of which is the Lancet kamikaze drone. Its latest modifications, equipped with an automatic recognition and capture system, allows the drone to independently identify and target targets. But to increase the combat radius of action, other means of delivery of the attack drone to the target area are required, such as air carriers.
Russia is conducting research in this direction. United Aircraft Corporation has developed and received patent RU2816326 C1 (download PDF) for an air-launched barrage munition for single-use. The kamikaze drone is launched from standard aircraft catapult devices such as AKU-58 from external suspension points and from universal intrafuselage catapult devices such as UVKU-50 from internal suspension points of front-line aircraft. The turbojet engine provides the drone with the ability to fly at altitudes of up to 8,000 metres at speeds from 130 to 715 km/h.
Based on the figures presented in the patent and the direct reference to the placement of the kamikaze drone on universal intrafuselage catapult devices such as UVKU-50, it is assumed that the carrier aircraft can be not only, for example, Su-34 front-line bombers, but also the fifth-generation fighter Su-57. The UVKU-50 catapult device was developed specifically for the T-50 PAK FA T-50 advanced front-line aviation system, which was officially named Su-57 in 2017.
The air-launched unmanned aerial vehicle has a trapezoidal fuselage, a sweeping wing, a double-winged all-winged plumage, an air intake, nozzle and attachment units. Inside the fuselage is the warhead. The UAV is equipped with a jet propulsion system, an optical system, navigation system sensors and an onboard intelligent search and guidance system based on trained neural networks.
On the lower surface of the fuselage head section there is an optical system window. On the upper surface of the centre section is the air intake of the power plant. The sweep wing and the two-wing all-wing swivel tail are foldable. In the transport position the wing consoles are retracted in overlap under the fuselage. In the flight position they are rotated and take the flight position. The plumage is folded along the side of the fuselage, and in flight it is also unfolded and is an extension of the fuselage lateral shape. The folding wing consoles and plumage provides the UAV with reduced dimensions, minimising aerodynamic drag during transport, making it possible to place the kamikaze drone in the internal compartments of the carrier aircraft.
The drone’s onboard system autonomously searches for targets and makes a decision to engage them, providing the carrier aircraft with the ability to remain beyond the reach of enemy air defences. Equipped with various types of warheads: high-explosive, fragmentation-fuzed, fragmentation-fuzed-incendiary or shaped charge, the barrage munition can engage a wide range of targets, including manpower, armoured and vehicle vehicles, artillery installations, MLRS installations, aircraft and helicopters on airfields.
The explanatory note to the patent says that the strike drone can be controlled both from an airborne command centre, which the carrier acts as, and from a ground station, and also has the capability of fully autonomous control.
“The UAV is launched up to the line of contact. Then the UAV performs autonomous flight using navigation system sensors. When it enters the target area, it starts searching according to the route specified in the flight task or builds an independent optimal search route. Camera data and information on detected or recognised targets are transmitted in real time to an airborne command post or mobile ground control point,” the patent says.
Once a target is detected, the UAV can operate either autonomously or under external target designation. In an autonomous search, the UAV independently forms a flight path and makes a decision to engage the target based on data received from onboard sensors. In external target designation, the UAV receives information about the target’s location from an operator in the carrier aircraft or on the ground. In this case, the drone also independently forms a flight path and strikes the target.
In both cases, after switching to attack mode, the kamikaze drone autonomously generates a flight path to the target to engage it. If the target is not found within the allotted time, the UAV strikes the target with pre-determined coordinates that were included in the flight task.
The developers of the Sukhoi Design Bureau note that the UAV’s design and layout provides it with low stealth, low aerodynamic drag, the ability to be used autonomously without prior target designation at any time of the day and in any weather conditions, automatic recognition of the target type, increased range of the aircraft, safety of the carrier aircraft when the UAV is launched, reconnaissance and transmission of information, including information on detected targets to a ground control centre or airborne command post before the moment the UAV is launched.
“The air-launched unmanned aerial vehicle is characterised by high target engagement efficiency, is cheap and available for mass production,” the patent abstract states.
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading...