Armed Forces of Ukraine landed the latest UAV "Orlan-30": instead of a fuel tank, it had a plastic bottle

By: Anry Sergeev | 14.04.2022, 13:01
Armed Forces of Ukraine landed the latest UAV "Orlan-30": instead of a fuel tank, it had a plastic bottle

On the official page of the 24th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after King Danil on Facebook appeared message on the effective landing by means of the electronic warfare troops of the latest Orlan-30 unmanned aerial vehicle, which is in service with Russia. The event took place in the Luhansk region, where the day before forcibly landed UAV "Orlan-10". The attention of the fighters was attracted by the use of an ordinary plastic bottle for drinking water as a fuel tank, which rather indicates that the drone had already received damage earlier and was repaired with improvised means.

What is the UAV Orlan-30

Orlan-30 is a further development of the main reconnaissance UAV of the Russian army Orlan-10, developed by the company "Special Technology Center ". UAVs of the Orlan series are a monoplane with a wingspan of 3.1 meters, equipped with a gasoline engine and launched from a catapult. With a takeoff weight of 14 kilograms, it is capable of carrying up to 5 kilograms of payload (this is not an attack drone, it cannot carry weapons, we are talking only about cameras for aerial photography). The maximum speed of such a device is 150 km / h, the range is from 50 to 120 km (with a flight range of 600 km). The drone can stay in the air for 10 to 16.5 hours at an altitude of up to 5,000 meters and lands by parachute. One point can simultaneously control up to 4 drones, each of them is able to fly along a route that includes up to 60 points on the map or in loitering mode. 

It differs from the base model Orlan-30 by its doubled weight (27 kg) and, accordingly, can carry more payload (up to 8 kg). This can be an improved 80-megapixel camera with an electronic-optical image stabilization system, as well as electronic reconnaissance and bearing devices, background radiation measuring instruments, etc.


A photo:  Prototype Orlan-30 at the ISSE exhibition in 2013 (Wikipedia )

What electronic warfare equipment could be used

To combat unmanned vehicles, the electronic warfare troops of the Ukrainian armed forces can use a special complex Note developed by the companyTritel and introduced in 2019. He is able to suppress cellular networks of all standards common in Ukraine, and is also able to counteract electronic warfare and counter-battery radars. The Nota electronic warfare system uses two types of antennas - directional and circular (omnidirectional), which allows both to completely cover stationary objects and to drown out a specific sector. 


A photo: The electronic warfare complex "Nota", installed on armored car Kozak-2 (Wikipedia ).

For those who want to know more