Post #3172375

In war balloon news ... Ukrainian forces have tested an unusual tactic that could significantly extend the reach of the Hornet strike drone: launching it from a tethered aerostat at high altitude rather than from a ground-based catapult, a combination that Ukrainian sources claim nearly doubles the weapon’s effective range. The test, details of which circulated through Ukrainian military channels, involved a Hornet manufactured by Perennial Autonomy being dropped from a balloon at approximately 8 kilometers altitude after the aerostat carried the drone 42 kilometers from its launch point. Ukrainian sources reported that the drone consumed only 5 percent of its battery capacity during the aerostat transit, leaving almost its full energy reserve available for the powered strike mission. Ukrainian operators claim the tactic could extend the Hornet’s operational reach from approximately 150 kilometers to around 300 kilometers, though these figures have not been independently verified. Source: https://defence-blog.com/ukraine-tests-hornet-strike-drone-launched-from-aerostat/