Spain’s Quaternium is claiming a new world record for the endurance of a multi-rotor unmanned aircraft system (UAS).
The four-hour, 40-minute drone flight took place in Valencia, Spain, on Dec. 24th using its HYBRiX.20 fuel-electric quadcopter for the record flight. The HYBRiX.20 was designed by Quaternium in 2014, and its first model was built in 2015.
The configuration of the unit for this test replicates a commercial configuration with 20kg MTOW, 400 g payload and 5 liters of fuel. The video shows the entire flight time provided by the fuel until the combustion engine stops. Then, HYBRiX lands on electric-only mode, using the energy from the battery. This is a test for demonstration purposes only, though. Running out of fuel is not advised for commercial applications.
HYBRiX.20 is a unique long-endurance RPA that empowers aerial service providers all over the world to perform their missions faster than ever before.
Source: Press Release