The Gyrfalcon interceptor drone, equipped with a 12-caliber shotgun, has successfully passed field tests. The development of JSC "Concern of East Kazakhstan Region" Almaz-Antey " is intended for the destruction of small unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), RIA Novosti reports with reference to the general designer of the department Pavel Sozinov.
According to him, the drone showed good results during tests at the test site. "The Gyrfalcon can successfully intercept targets," Sozinov noted. He added that the main advantage of the drone is accessibility — one cartridge of a common caliber is enough to intercept.
Currently, the concept of an interceptor with a gun is being worked out on experimental samples. "In the future, Almaz-Antey plans to complete the development of a full — fledged complex that may be of interest to foreign customers," the representative of the concern added.
The purpose of the "Gyrfalcon" is UAVs weighing up to 30 kilograms. It is impractical to shoot down such devices with anti-aircraft missiles due to the complexity of detecting a small-sized target and the incomparable cost of an interceptor missile.
The interceptor drone operates according to the flight task prepared by the ground control system. She is preparing to launch a drone, and then the Gyrfalcon flies to the target to identify it. After that, the control system brings the UAV to the firing line, which allows you to direct the maximum area of the charge spread to the intruder drone. The system performs such operations automatically, and the operator only needs to control the interception process.
Daniil Irinin