Ukrainian Raybird-3 drone to hunt Russian air defenses with new tech

Defense Express reported the information.

Recently, Ukrainian company Skyeton announced that, in cooperation with Danish company Quadsat, it is developing a new payload for the Raybird-3 drone, also known as the ACS-3 - an electromagnetic spectrum monitoring system.

Quadsat specializes in just such systems, in particular, they have a quadcopter-based radio frequency interference geolocation system QS RF Locator. It allows detecting radar stations, electronic warfare systems, communication stations, and other electronic equipment.

A similar system will likely be installed on the Ukrainian Raybird drone, but based on available photos, a radio-transparent dome will be added for better aerodynamics. The QS RF Locator can cover hundreds of square kilometers and identify targets with an accuracy of 100 by 100 meters.

Despite the seemingly significant margin of error, this should be more than sufficient - especially if the Raybird-3 operates alongside another reconnaissance drone or a kamikaze drone like the RUBAKA, which is actively used by the Ukrainian Main Intelligence Directorate and has caused a real "genocide" of Russian radars and air defense systems in Crimea.

The Raybird-3 drone has been developed by the Ukrainian company Skyeton since 2014, when the first sketches appeared. This drone has logged over 300,000 flight hours and set a national record in 2019 for flight duration by staying airborne for a full day, later reaching 28 hours.

During its flight, it can cover distances up to 2,500 km, but drone control is possible up to 220 km. The maximum flight altitude is 5.5 km. The drone is launched from a catapult, although earlier reports mentioned the possibility of launching from a pickup truck.

The Raybird-3 can operate under active electronic warfare conditions. Weighing 22 kg in total, it can carry up to 5 kg of payload, which may include an optical targeting system, a laser designator, or a new electronic intelligence system.