Ukraine captured a rare Russian drone "Orlan-30" - it can fly 300 km at speeds up to 170 km/h and uses a laser designator
The Ukrainian Armed Forces have landed two Russian reconnaissance drones. One of them is a rare Orlan-30 drone.
Here's What We Know
The Air Force was able to capture the Orlan-10 and the Orlan-30. We will not dwell on the "ten" because the Defense Forces eliminate such drones almost every day. But we will talk about "Orlan-30" in more detail.
#Ukraine: Two Russian drones were forced to land by the Ukrainian Air Assault forces in the South using electronic warfare systems - one is a common Orlan-10 recon UAV and the other is a much rarer Orlan-30 with better optics and ability to designate laser-guided weapons. pic.twitter.com/2PZn8GGCRR
- ???????? Ukraine Weapons Tracker (@UAWeapons) September 23, 2022
Basically, it is an improved version of the Orlan-10. Unmanned aerial vehicle is also used for reconnaissance, but can carry 8 kg of payload. For example, radiation background measurement equipment, cameras with optical stabilization or means of radio-electronic reconnaissance.
The maximum takeoff weight is 27 kg. This is twice as much as the Orlan-10. One of the features of "Orlan-30" was the possibility of using a laser designator. In simple words, the flying vehicle with a laser can indicate the "route" to the guided munition.
"Orlan-30" can fly for 5 hours. It has a range of 300 km and a range of 150 km. The drone can climb to an altitude of up to 5,000 m and reach a speed of up to 170 km/h. For comparison, the maximum speed of the Orlan-10 is 150 km/h, and the range is 120 km.
Source: @UAWeapons
