Chitradurga: The maiden flight of the Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator was carried out successfully by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) from the Aeronautical Test Range, here today.
Operating in a fully autonomous mode, the aircraft exhibited a perfect flight, including take-off, waypoint navigation and a smooth touchdown, the Ministry of Defence stated.
The flight marks a “major milestone” in terms of proving critical technologies for the development of future unmanned aircraft and is a significant step toward self-reliance in such strategic defence technologies.
The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle is designed and developed by Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru, a premier research laboratory of DRDO. It is powered by a small turbofan engine. The airframe, undercarriage and entire flight control and avionics systems used for the aircraft were developed indigenously.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has congratulated DRDO and said it is a major achievement toward autonomous aircraft and will pave the way for ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ in terms of critical military systems.
Secretary, Department of Defence Research and Development and Chairman DRDO Dr G Satheesh Reddy appreciated the efforts of the teams associated with the design, development and testing of the system.
– global bihari bureau
