Elistair introduces Orion HL tethered drone designed for tactical communications

Elistair announces the launch of Orion Heavy Lift (HL) to support growing demand for variable height antennas from military, public safety and homeland security customers. As tactical communications evolve to match the rapidly changing needs of operators on the ground, tethered drones offer significant benefits when flexibility and mobility are critical. With the need for highly effective ground units to have increased mobility, tethered drones are enabling the establishment and extension of secured mobile networks, thanks to their rapid deployment time and persistence in the air.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link

Along with Elistair's new Payload Development Kit, partners can now seamlessly integrate their payloads and sensors to widen the capabilities of the platform for the end-users (Picture source: Elistair)

Leveraging the original Orion platform used by military forces and security forces in over 30 countries for ISR missions, the Orion HL benefits from the same level of automation, ruggedization and safety architecture as its parent. Able to carry payloads of 4 kgs at 90 meters and 5 kgs at 50 meters height, for flight durations of 50 hours, Orion HL is deployable in minutes and easily transportable.

"We have put the Orion 2 tethered UAV system through several tests during the last year's experiment to test its limits. During these tests, the system has proven to be a flexible and reliable solution capable of handling the challenging operational environment and conditions above the Arctic Circle in Norway. The introduction of the Heavy Lift version also provides us with a very useful tool for lifting communication equipment to create temporary communication coverage in challenging areas of operation." Experiment Manager "Tor" from the Norwegian Army Combined Arms Battle Laboratory.

Along with Elistair's new Payload Development Kit, partners can now seamlessly integrate their payloads and sensors to widen the capabilities of the platform for the end-users. A beta-testing program with selected partners allowed the successful integration of a CORDIS Array II from Radionor, a 5G relay, and a SIGINT payload.

The first deliveries are planned for the end of May 2023.

Leveraging the original Orion platform used by military forces and security forces in over 30 countries for ISR missions, the Orion HL benefits from the same level of automation, ruggedization and safety architecture as its parent (Picture source: Elistair)

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Defense News March 2023