MOSCOW, July 30-RIA Novosti. The Russian strike unmanned aerial vehicle "Orion "as part of the ongoing tests of the weapons complex will perform the first launches of anti-tank guided missiles" Whirlwind " in the autumn, a source in the military-industrial complex told RIA Novosti.
The source added that "the introduction of the ATGM "Whirlwind" into the Orion armament will significantly increase the capabilities of the device to destroy heavily armored vehicles on the battlefield, including the most modern and protected tanks."
He noted that "Vortices" have a high probability of hitting moving targets of the "tank" type - it is more than 80%.
The interlocutor also added that one unmanned aircraft from the Orion complex will be able to carry two guided missiles "Whirlwind", which will be suspended on the device in containers on underwing pylons.
As previously reported in Kalashnikov, which produces modernized Vortices, the company's specialists are considering the possibility of integrating these ATGMs on the Orion drone. The export version of the Orion-E drone at MAKS-2021 was presented with the launch containers of the Vikhr-M complex lying side by side on pallets.
According to Kalashnikov, anti-tank guided missiles "Whirlwind" are capable of hitting targets with high accuracy at a range of up to 10 kilometers. The missiles of the complex have a supersonic speed, a tandem cumulative warhead and can penetrate up to 750 millimeters of homogeneous armor behind dynamic protection. The maximum launch height of the rocket is 4 kilometers. The carriers of the "Whirlwind" complex today are Ka-52 attack helicopters.
The unmanned complex with Orion devices was developed by the Kronstadt Group. The device belongs to the class of medium-high impact unmanned aerial vehicles of long flight duration. Its maximum take-off weight is 1150 kilograms, cruising flight speed is 200 kilometers per hour, the maximum flight altitude is 7 kilometers, the device can stay in the air for up to a day. The wingspan of the drone is 16 meters, the length is 8 meters. The maximum mass of the drone's combat load is 200 kilograms.
