DRDO Successful Test Flights of High-Altitude Pseudo Satellite Model

Defense News ,India :- India's Council of Scientific and Industrial Research – National Aerospace Laboratories (CSIR-NAL) recently conducted a series of flight tests on a smaller version of its high-altitude pseudo satellite (HAPS) platform, as reported by Janes.

The tests took place at the Defence Research and Development Organisation's Aeronautical Test Range in Karnataka from January 23 to February 2. The scaled-down model, with a 12-meter wingspan and a maximum weight of 22 kg, completed around 22 flights, accumulating nearly 37 hours in the air.

L Venkatakrishnan, NAL's chief scientist and director of the high-altitude platform program, shared with Janes that the model met or exceeded all set performance goals. This included a flight endurance of more than 8 hours and 30 minutes, reaching an altitude of almost 3 km above sea level. The flight tests also evaluated climb rate, maximum bank angle, turn radius, and performance with one engine inoperative.

The tests mark a significant milestone in NAL's HAPS project, demonstrating a Reynolds number equivalent flight at an altitude of 3 km. The tested model was equipped with the necessary payloads and flight systems for a full-scale platform, along with cameras to observe its in-flight performance. The subscale model, powered by high-performance solar photovoltaic cells and a battery system, can achieve a 24-hour endurance flight, making it suitable for low-altitude missions, according to Venkatakrishnan.