Russia’s Orion Attack-Reconnaissance Unmanned Aerial System (Infographics)

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On October 23^rd, the first Orion UAV that was delivered to the Russian Armed Forces was showcased in a video.

This and much more were described and shown in the program “Smotr” of the Russian NTV channel, which clearly demonstrates the capabilities of the drone.

In particular, the UAV’s arsenal now has inexpensive small-sized weapons developed on the basis of standard warheads of the Grad MLRS.

These are guided aerial bombs weighing 20 and 50 kilograms with a folding wing, which allows them to glide exactly to the target.

The arsenal also includes KAB-20 corrected aerial bombs and small-sized missiles.

Orion is equipped with three suspension points – two under the wing consoles and one under the fuselage.

The maximum weight of the payload is 200 kilograms.

It is noteworthy that initially the UAV was created as a reconnaissance aircraft, but now its capabilities have been significantly expanded.

Earlier it was reported that the drone can be in the air for a day, moving at an average speed of 200 kilometers per hour. However, due to the aerodynamic qualities close to the airframe, under certain conditions the flight time may turn out to be even longer.

The UAV control center includes the commander’s position, drone control operator stations and payload control operator stations.

Everything was initially designed so that there was no need to use professional pilots.

Takeoff and landing are also carried out automatically, the operators make sure that there is no emergency, and, if necessary, can stop takeoff or give the command to go around on landing.

It is noteworthy that the landing system has three levels.

The first is satellite navigation, the so-called “peaceful” method. But in wartime, satellites can be disabled, disabled, or drowned out.

In this case, there is a second system – radar. For Orion, a special two-band landing radar has been developed, which has already been repeatedly used in practice in extreme conditions – the UAV was tested in Syria.

The third landing system is laser, in case there is a powerful jamming for the locator.

The Russian Ministry of Defense signed an act of acceptance of the first Orion UAV in April 2020.

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