BAE Systems Australia has conducted initial flight-test work with its developmental STRIX unmanned air vehicle (UAV).
Flight trials took place in late October following a ground testing campaign, says the company. BAE first unveiled STRIX at the Avalon air show in February 2023.
A video shows the four-rotor prototype UAV take off vertically, perform several turns while hovering, and then land vertically.
The work at an undisclosed location in Australia aimed to demonstrate the BAE Vehicle Management System’s ability to control the aircraft during launch, manoeuvre, hover, and recovery. A remote pilot monitored the activity but did not intervene.
“This programme milestone highlights the ingenuity and capability of world-class Australian engineers and delivers on our proof of concept at rapid pace,” says Andrew Gresham, managing director of BAE Systems Australia’s Defence Delivery business unit.
“Major flight-test objectives were achieved, including safe and autonomous control of an all-new [vertical take-off and landing] aircraft configuration never flown before in the history of flight.”
The …