CUTTING EDGE
DISPATCHES FROM THE FRONT LINE OF AEROSPACE TECHNOLOGY
IT APPEARS THE Russian warplane-maker Sukhoi has a plan to fix the most obvious flaw in the design of its new Okhotnik (Hunter) combat drone.
Photos of the Sukhoi pavilion at Russia’s MAKS airshow in Moscow reveal a model of what is apparently the ultimate version of the jetpowered, armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV).
The new version of the subsonic Okhotnik features an engine exhaust that is flush with the airframe. The current prototype version of the drone, which first appeared in January 2019, features an unshrouded AL-31 engine that protrudes from the fuselage.
A protruding, unshrouded engine nozzle represents a major source of radar signature and could render the drone highly detectable from the side and rear aspects.
The Okhotnik’s new exhaust layout is similar to that on the US military’s own X-45A drone demonstrator, which flew more than 50 test flights between 2002 and 2005 and was hugely influential in US unmanned combat air vehicle development.
It’s unclear whether the new exhaust also will require Sukhoi to install a new engine on the Okhotnik. A change of powerplant could complicate Russia’s eff orts to speed the Okhotnik into front-line service.
