Palianytsia drone will speed up strikes on Russian airfields — aviation expert

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

“From what we were shown, we saw a cylinder about 2.5 meters long, about 40 cm in diameter, with quite serious wings attached to it. That is, the aerodynamic quality of this missile drone, in my opinion, will be quite high, much higher than conventional cruise missiles. The very design of the Palianytsia's wings is that they open and do not stand still, so the aerodynamic component is quite high,” commented Kryvolap.

According to his estimates, the gas turbine engine used in the Palianytsia missile drone produces approximately 100 kg of thrust. This provides sufficient power to launch the Palianytsia from a considerable distance. The effectiveness of the drone is influenced by the ratio of warhead to fuel: a larger warhead allows for longer flight distances, while a smaller warhead permits less fuel usage.

“I think that the Palianytsia will have a warhead weighing no more than 100 kg, most likely in the range of 60-80 kg. As for the flight range, it will exceed 300 km. This is a truly new weapon that history has never seen before. It integrates guidance systems already tested on our drones. The Palianytsia will have a speed of about 500 km/h, with a possible variance of 100 km/h. This increased speed will enable us to strike airfields much faster. While our current drones are precise and effective, they operate at speeds of 120-180 km/h, limiting their speed. A gas turbine-powered drone will offer higher speeds, giving us hope that enemy aircraft will not have enough time to take off from their airfields,” the aviation expert noted.

Kryvolap believes that the Palianytsia is not a single model but rather part of a family of drones that will operate at various distances with different warhead configurations.

• On August 24, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the emergence of a new Ukrainian weapon at the Independence Day celebrations.