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Australian technology company Autono Drone is exploring the application of its heavy payload vertical take-off and landing cargo drones for military use.
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The Perth-based company already builds commercial products including long-range crop spray and open frame A200 Autono Drones to lift loads of 200 kilograms, 500 kilograms, 1,000 kilograms or 2,500 kilograms.
Each drone is employed for autonomous, vertical take-off and landing (VTOL), beyond visual line of sight cargo supply mission to GPS coordinates.
It’s understood the Australian company is currently investigating interest in their logistics drone technology for military use, including for the Australian Defence Force.
“We understand that potential logistic customers need and want a robust solution now that can easily integrate into existing supply chains,” according to statements made by Autono Drone co-founder and chief executive officer Bill Velkovski during an interview with Drones World earlier this month.
“A key criterion was VTOL capability, so it became a design exercise in how to satisfy all those criteria using an internal combustion engine.
“We are focused on moving to commercialise rapidly; the beauty of Autono Drone’s design DNA is the ease of rapid mass manufacture and deployment of manufacturing capability globally to meet an expected increase in demand for our cargo drone solutions.
“Autono Drone is targeting test flights of the A200 prototype in quarter one 2024 and manufacturing quarter four 2024 at a maximum rate of five A200 units per week.
“The finished A200 drones are easily transported by conventional containers, in numbers, or can be transported as single units in a large van or truck.
“Further, we expect to finalise the A500 design in 2024 with first production in 2025 with the A1000 design completion in 2025 and first production in 2026.
“As we build out our product range and business, we can then focus on best available fuel energy and propulsion systems such as hybrid or pure electric designs as battery technology progresses.”
