Russian Defence Ministry and the Emergencies Ministry may order the new Shmel (Bumblebee) unmanned aerial vehicle from the Vega company, CEO of the Moscow Research Institute of Radio Engineering Yuri Nevzorov told reporters.
“To date, the development is in the final stage. There are a few prototypes, but we are not yet prepared for the stage of the flight tests. We have conducted our own commissioning tests. The Defense Ministry, the Emergencies Ministry, and the Transport Ministry are paying interest [to the project],” Nevzorov said at the 10th international exhibition Gidroaviasalon in Gelendzhik.
The UAV Shmel can be used as a flying laboratory for testing a variety of unmanned systems, as well as for the initial training of cadets.
“We tried to make it run without a pilot, to put him on the ground, while leaving the manned aircraft as it is,” Nevzorov said.
“It has some overlapping channels, which allow you to control the device even in case of active opposition from the enemy,” the researcher said.
The manned flights of the Yakovlev Yak-52 and two Shmel drones have been carried out for the first time in the history of the exhibition. The flights were conducted by a special piloting group of the research institute.
Source: RIA Novosti