RuAviation

On 21 August 2024, the Federal Air Transport Agency (Rosaviatsia) issued Russia’s first airworthiness certificate (CAF) to BAS Glory Air for the OG-003 unmanned civilian aircraft of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft type (eVTOL). The machine was assigned registration number RA-271EP. This was reported in the press service of the company.

BAS Glory Air LLC is a joint venture of Glory Air and the United Aircraft Corporation. Established in 2023, it specialises in the development, production and sales of unmanned aircraft systems of aircraft type with vertical take-off and landing. The product line offered consists of UAVs with payloads ranging from 5 to 50 kilograms. Since 2024, BAS Glory Air products have been manufactured in Russia. The proposed UAVs are capable of solving a wide range of tasks in the spheres of transport, industry, medicine, agriculture and forestry, as well as can be used for narrower areas requiring specialised UAVs.

The OG-003 is a UAV with electric lift and thrust motors, developed in Russia taking into account the requirements of the Russian Federation legislation on localisation of production. Initially, the development of the OG-003 platform for its practical use in Russian conditions was carried out jointly with a Chinese partner. Currently, the development of the OG-003 BVS is fully implemented in Russia. The key feature of the complex is the presence of an autonomous flight mode, which allows the vehicle to continue the previously planned route or return to the original point of departure in the absence of a ground control station and pilot.

As part of the certification of the OG-003, a series of tests were conducted to confirm the flight performance of the machine, as well as its compliance with the applicable airworthiness and environmental protection airworthiness requirements (FAP-61). The CAF confirms the aircraft’s airworthiness and allows it to use Russian airspace not only under experimental legal regimes, but also for commercial flights.

The maximum take-off weight of the OG-003 is 75kg. The drone does not require additional equipment for launching, is capable of taking off in a limited space without a runway with a cargo weighing up to 20 kilograms and flying at a distance of up to 300 kilometres. The complex can be used in simple and complex weather conditions day and night. Serial production of the OG-003 system is expected to begin in March 2025.

Due to its functionality and manoeuvrability, OG-003 can primarily be used for training UAV operators and external pilots. OG-003 is also capable of providing new logistical capabilities for hard-to-reach areas, including those with challenging climatic conditions.

The OG-003 certification process took about six months. Currently, the Glory Air is preparing documents to obtain CAFs for the other two prototype eVTOL models, OG-65 and OG-202.