The Razor UAV can increase the range of air-to-air or air-to-ground missiles by more than 320 kilometers, the manufacturer claims.
The American company Mayman Aerospace announced the successful completion of flight tests at a military base in the California desert of a prototype of the Razor vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) jet unmanned aerial vehicle. European Security & Defense writes about it.
As noted in the publication, Razor is a multi-purpose drone that can be used for reconnaissance, surveillance and reconnaissance, as well as for the transportation of critical military cargo.
In addition, according to the manufacturer, the UAV can be configured to extend the range of smaller air-to-air or air-to-surface missiles such as the Brimstone or Hellfire. The UAV is capable of delivering a missile to a distance of more than 320 kilometers, hovering in place until receiving a command, and then releasing the missile to finalize the target.
The Razor can reportedly take off from a 3 x 3 meter pad, reach speeds of up to 805 km/h and operate at altitudes of up to 6000 meters. Other features include navigation and control using artificial intelligence without GPS.
"As a multi-role, dual-role technology, Razor is already changing the way military commanders and civilian leaders think about autonomous VTOLs," said Mayman Aerospace CEO David Mayman.
Mayman Aerospace Chief Engineer Dr. Manu Sharma added that the UAV had completed seven autonomous missions during the trials. He emphasized that all systems worked perfectly as planned. The main purpose was to test the latest software updates and flight controls.
The Razor is also reported to be a fully scalable device. Currently, Mayman Aerospace plans to develop P100, P500 and P1000 variants with payloads of 45 kilograms, 227 kilograms and 454 kilograms respectively. Production and sale of the P100 is planned for 2025.