Hybrid Gas-Electric Multirotor Drone Breaks Endurance Record

By Mike Ball / 21 Mar 2021
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WORLD RECORD drone flies 13 HOURS

Skyfront’s Perimeter 8 UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) has set a new record for multirotor drone flight time, staying airborne for 13 hours and 4 minutes and travelling a distance of 205 miles. The Perimeter 8 is a hybrid gasoline-electric platform with eight rotors, designed to meet and exceed the capabilities of even the most advanced helicopters.

The record-breaking flight was achieved thanks to Skyfront’s proprietary fuel-injected hybrid gasoline-electric powertrain, which replaces the battery and extends flight times by up to a factor of twenty. It is optimized for power and efficiency and is seamlessly integrated into the UAV design to reduce weight and power consumption.

Skyfront’s drones are designed to solve flight time limitations and unlock the true economic potential of UAVs, undertaking previously time-consuming missions in a single flight. The long-endurance solutions do away with the hassle of constantly swapping and charging batteries, enabling industries to scale their operations with ease.

Troy Mestler, CEO of Skyfront, commented: “In an unheard of industry feat, our drone stayed aloft for the entire day. Outfitted with an auxiliary fuel tank, the Perimeter 8 captured the sun traversing the sky, rising and setting over California’s Coastal Ranges. This flight signals a paradigm shift in aviation for public safety and commercial applications. No longer will police departments, fire departments, and utility companies have to spend huge sums of money on traditional helicopters to monitor, search, or rescue. Most importantly, no longer will we have to risk lives to save lives.”

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Posted by Mike Ball Mike Ball is our resident technical editor here at Unmanned Systems Technology. Combining his passion for teaching, advanced engineering and all things unmanned, Mike keeps a watchful eye over everything related to the unmanned technical sector. With over 10 years’ experience in the unmanned field and a degree in engineering, Mike’s been heading up our technical team here for the last 8 years. Connect & Contact

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