Elistair, a leader in long-endurance, tethered unmanned aircraft systems, has partnered with Rheinmetall Canada Inc. to provide military customers with an on-the-move ISR solution that combines Elistair’s fully automated KHRONOS tethered drone with the Mission Master family of unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs).
The new partnership follows closely on the heels of a successful demonstration of the KHRONOS and the Mission Master SP, an electric-powered UGV designed for resupply missions, overwatch, and payload carriage, before undisclosed European military officials at Rheinmetall Canada’s test track in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Québec.
“We are very excited to be collaborating with a major defense contractor like Rheinmetall Canada,” said Guilhem de Marliave, CEO of Elistair. “By combining their Mission Master family of UGVs with our push-button, long-endurance, automated KHRONOS drone, Rheinmetall Canada can provide customers with an advanced solution for unmanned reconnaissance and convoy escort.”
Elistair first unveiled KHRONOS last November. The tethered drone deploys from a transportable dronebox in under two minutes and can stay aloft, even when operating from a moving platform, for up to 24 hours at a stretch, providing continuous day/night coverage of an area 10 kilometers in radius.
The 30-kg (66-pound) KHRONOS can also fly in poor weather and in GPS/GNSS-Denied and RF-denied environments. “And thanks to its advanced automated features, it is easy to control, saving customers the heavy investment in training drone operators,” de Marliave said.
“The Mission Master family of UGVs can carry a variety of ISR payloads,” said Alain Tremblay, VP of Business Development and Innovation at Rheinmetall Canada. “But KHRONOS definitely has its advantages, and we see international interest given its innovative capacity to adapt to current and future complex theatres of operation.”
First deliveries of the KHRONOS dronebox are set for March.
