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Amongst its range of UAVs covering the tactical to strategic levels the Aerospace Business Division of Korean Air showed a new type known as the Hybrid drone, or KUS-HD, at Seoul ADEX 2017.
A spokesman said the KUS-HD, which uses a petrol engine to recharge its electrical batteries, offers 2-4 times greater endurance than a regular quadrotor. Able to fly for two hours and with a 70km/h maximum speed, the 30kg aircraft can carry an 8kg payload.
Korean Air lists military ISR missions amongst its intended functions, as well as ‘coast guard, forest fire monitoring, disaster countermeasures, parcel delivery and electricity tower inspection’ missions as examples of civil applications.
The KUS-HD measures 2m x 2m and has a 10km range. Its first flight occurred in December 2016 and two prototypes exist, the spokesman said. Whilst the external appearance is finalised, development continues with the internal configuration and communications. The representative said it should be completed next year.
Meanwhile, the KUS-FT tactical UAV system entered series production for the Republic of Korea Army (ROKA) last year. Also used by the ROK Marine Corps, a single system comprises four UAVs, a ground control system, ground support system and catapult launch/recovery set. It currently carries an EO/IR payload, though a communications relay package is intended in the future.
Dong-Kwan Kang, manager of the marketing team (UAV business) at the Aerospace Business Division, said the KUS-FT was attracting considerable attention from potential foreign customers thanks to its price and deep-dive ability where it lands at an angle of 12°. The KUS-FT employs 97% Korean-made components.
Another Korean Air unmanned design on show was one of three prototypes of the KUS-VT tiltrotor capable of VTOL flying. After the project commenced a decade ago, the design is still in system development, with work going on in conjunction with the Korea Research Aerospace Institute (KARI).
The KUS-VT can fly for six hours or a distance of 200km at a cruising speed of 200km/h (its maximum velocity is 250km/h) thanks to a 55hp rotary engine. Its maximum take-off weight is 200kg and it measures 3.5m long.
Midyear the KUS-VT was successfully flown from a South Korean coast guard vessel moving at a speed of 10kt. The navy and army are also being targeted as future users. However, a spokesman said the aircraft will need another 4-5 years to complete development because of the technological challenges inherent in the tiltrotor design. The partnership is set to request further government funding for the project.
The strategic-level KUS-FS (pictured above), a MALE aircraft destined for the Republic of Korea Air Force, first flew in 2012 and a series of flight tests was completed last year. A scale model shown at Seoul ADEX indicates the finalised form of the actual aircraft, which has a 25m wingspan and 13m length. It is powered by a 1,500hp engine, but performance specifications remain secret. Kang indicated that development should be completed in 2018.
Korean Air also showed a conceptual model of the next-generation KUS-FC, an armed aircraft with stealthy design and internal weapon bay. Specifications listed by the company give a length of 10m and wingspan of 16m for the turbojet-powered UCAV. Thanks to government funding the company has been working on it for 4-5 years but the design shown was conceptual only.
https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/uv-online/adex-2017-korean-air-promotes-crewless-aircraft/
