After Israel canceled a 20-year gag order on the fact that it is using armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), Israeli defense drone companies are working to offer vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) UAVs armed with weapon systems. The first company to do so is Steadicopter, which used one of its advanced unmanned VTOL systems as a platform for a weapon system. Its Golden Eagle is the first unmanned helicopter with precise strike capabilities from the air, enabling both military and security forces to meet the challenges of the modern battlefield and complex environments.
Based on the combat-proven Black Eagle 50E platform, Golden Eagle is powered by two advanced technologies, enabling tactical forces to achieve complete terrain dominance. These technologies include Smart Shooter’s SMASH Dragon robotic weaponry payload to ensure precise target elimination and an AI-based technology for superior situational awareness and autonomous multi-target classification & tracking. The real-time fire control algorithms direct the weapon and accurately time the shot in order to achieve a precise hit. The complete suite can incorporate various types of assault rifles, sniper rifles, 40mm, and other ammunition with great precision.
Lightweight, extremely cost-effective, simple to operate, and easy to maintain, the Golden Eagle has long endurance, vertical take-off, and landing capability, providing the force with the means to complete the mission with minimum contact with hostile forces. The Black Eagle 50E, weighing up to 35 kg, provides a high-performance flight envelope with a wide range of mission payloads, allowing a high level of mission versatility for covert operations. There is significant interest in the Golden Eagle system in several countries, although he refused to be specific.
The flight control computer is developed by Steadicopter and stands to the ADS33 standard. At Steadicopter we design, build the crafts and develop the systems. Arriving at any desired location, the two man team carries/wheels the aircraft to a takeoff position. They start the rotorcraft and the ground control system, the data link can be established, and the system is ready for lift off. A simple point and click on a GIS map will send the A/C to the target. Live video is sent in real-time to the Ground Control System for observation. A user-friendly graphical interface helps the operating crew in getting the best angle for the requested images without delay.
