UK Military Drone Sets Solar Flight Record

The latest Airbus Defence and Space High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) has set a new record for longest duration solar flight. The Zephyr S HAPS took off July 11^th in Arizona and landed 25 days, 23 hours, and 57 minutes later.

Airbus Defence and Space calls the Zephyr system the “world’s leading, solar–electric, stratospheric Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV).” In fact, a Zephyr prototype held the previous solar record of 14 days continuous flight.

The Zephyr S has a flight ceiling of 70,000 ft, and according to Air Force Technology, it can transmit real-time imagery, voice and data to areas covering 1,000km². It covers both line-of-sight (LOS) and beyond line-of-sight (BLOS) operations and includes solar cells and high-power lithium-sulphur batteries. With a total weight of 62 kg, it can carry payloads up to 5 kg, and the Zephyr S can also transmit information at 100Mpbs.

Several days ago, the UK Ministry of Defence announced the purchase of a third Zephyr S from Airbus, and the MOD has been nothing but thrilled with the £13 million ($16.7 million) contract.

“Zephyr is a cutting edge, record-breaking piece of kit that will be capable of gathering constant, reliable information over vast geographical areas at a much greater level of detail than ever before,” claimed Defence Secretary Michael Fallon.

Read more about this development here: https://www.airbus.com/newsroom/press-releases/en/2018/08/Airbus-Zephyr-Solar-High-Altitude-Pseudo-Satellite-flies-for-longer-than-any-other-aircraft.html