IDEX 2019: Estonian company Threod Systems unveiled its newest VTOL Stream C UAV.

The Estonian company Threod Systems was showcasing its newest UAV, the VTOL variant of its Stream C, which combines classic wings and four electric rotors mounted on booms located roughly at mid-length of the wings.

Threod Systems' Stream C UAV (Picture source: Army Recognition)

As Siim Juss, Business Development Manager, explained to Army Recognition, Threod Systems had already used this configuration for its EOS mini-UAV. This dual-flight capability imposed the development of specific algorithms, particularly for the transition from horizontal to vertical flight, as the drone has to switch from wings to rotors to fly. This dual capability enables the drone to be operated in confined spaces, where landing strips for such heavy drones are not available. And it makes possible to operate it from boats as well.

The MTOW is 45kg and the endurance averages 5 hours. Designed for surveillance and targeting tasks, the drone carries an electro-optic turret with laser rangefinder 30x optical/2x digital zoom sensor and a cooled medium-wave 7220p infrared sensor with a 18-275mm lens. Other payloads of the same type can replace this one. The dual-frequency communications system has AES-256 encryption and has a line-of-sight range exceeding 100 km.