Malaysia's Unmanned System Technologies has postponed the demonstration of a full-scale prototype mini unmanned air vehicle by several months, following the receipt of additional requirements from the nation's army. The joint-venture company had been expected to conduct a flight demonstration for the service last month, but an industry source says this milestone has been delayed until later in the third quarter at the earliest.
Formed late last year by domestic firms Composite Technology Research Malaysia (CTRM), Ikramatic and System Consultancy Services (SCS), Unmanned System Technologies is to develop an improved version of CTRM's Eagle SR2 UAV to meet national battlefield intelligence requirements (Flight International, 13-19 December 2005). "There is a basic version of the UAV and the companies are continuing to develop it," says the source. "There are requests and inputs they have to take on board before coming up with a full-scale prototype. It is important to ensure that it meets all the requirements, as it is being developed for a specific customer. This will take a bit longer than expected."
Around 30 staff are working on the new vehicle, which could also be slightly heavier than an earlier projected 100kg (220lb) total, including a 25kg payload. The platform's expected 2h endurance could also change over the coming months, the source says.
Government-controlled CTRM will have a majority stake in Unmanned System Technologies, which has yet to be registered.
The joint venture also hopes to market the new UAV to Malaysia's navy and potential civilian operators. Meanwhile, SCS continues to develop its own 35kg Nyamok UAV, which will be able to deploy a 15kg payload for up to 2h.
Source: Flight International
