MOSCOW, 21 Feb-RIA Novosti. One of the Russian medium-altitude strike drones of long flight duration "Orion" made 38 sorties in Syria, including 17 with strikes on terrorist targets, according to the story of the program "Vesti Nedeli" of the TV channel "Russia 1", dedicated to unmanned aerial vehicles of the Russian Federation.
The TV channel showed the Orion used in Syria in desert camouflage. On its board, according to the tradition of military aviation, stars are applied, demonstrating the number of completed combat missions. Each star additionally contains the letter "P", "B" or "P", where "P" means a reconnaissance flight, "B" — a flight with strikes on ground targets and " P " — a flight, presumably, to search for or highlight targets.
In accordance with the marking, the shown sample of the Orion drone carried out 17 sorties in Syria with the use of weapons, 20 reconnaissance and one for other purposes.
VKS Colonel Sergey Tyugay provided "Russia 1" with video footage of the Orion combat operation in Syria. "Now he is conducting reconnaissance, the weather conditions are very difficult, you can see, the lower clouds. After it has reached the target, it is aimed at the target, inflicts fire damage and as a result, the target is hit, " the representative of the VKS commented on the combat flight of the drone.
The plot shows the destruction of several terrorist targets, including a strike on a militant ammunition depot at night, when Orion searches for a target using the thermal imaging channel of its optical-location system.
The development of the drone began in 2011 on the order of the military department. "Orion", created as part of the development work "Pacer", belongs to the class of medium-altitude vehicles with a long flight duration. The device can be in flight for up to a day. Its maximum take-off weight is 1,100 kilograms, and its combat load is up to 250 kilograms. "Orion" is capable of using small-sized guided missiles and adjustable aerial bombs on ground targets.
