Home » Military » The United States will buy unmanned aerial vehicles similar to the Turkish TB2Penguin Drone - Edge AutonomySan Luis Obispo, California-based Edge Autonomy has announced an agreement to produce and supply an undisclosed number of long-endurance Penguin drones for the US military.The manufacturer produces lightweight drones that can carry a variety of payloads for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR), as well as targeting.According to the Edge Autonomy press release, the company has been providing UAS solutions (products) to the US Department of Defense and NATO allies for almost 25 years.However, it has not revealed the amount of new or existing orders.Penguin drones look similar to the popular Turkish-made Bayraktar TB2.Penguins are considerably smaller and fill different niches while maintaining an equivalent level of stamina.Edge Autonomy, formerly the UAV Factory, was founded in Latvia in 2009. In early 2022, the company changed its name following a merger with Jennings Aeronautics.The company, which has offices in Latvia, California and Virginia, manufactures several variants of the Penguin, including an electrically powered Penguin BE and a vertical takeoff and landing Penguin B VTOL.It also offers different drone operation items such as payloads, launchers and control stations.The company's unmanned technologies are used by government, commercial and academic customers in nearly 60 countries.The Penguin B is one of the most successful variants of the penguin drone.Since its introduction in 2009, the high-performance, semi-integrated Penguin B mini-UAV has been sold to system integrators in more than 40 countries, according to reports.The company introduced a VTOL upgrade kit for the Penguin B in June 2021. The drone collects real-time intelligence data and transmits it via a digital data link to the Portable Ground Control Station (PGCS).The Penguin B is made to quickly adapt to industrial and commercial uses.This 2.2 meter long and 3.3 meter wide aerial vehicle is designed to operate in harsh weather conditions such as rain and snow.It can take off from a runway or car launcher (CTL) and land using a parachute to recover.It also has an electro-optical camera installed under the center section of the fuselage to capture images of the field it surveys.The Penguin B has electro-optical (EO) and infrared (IR) sensors.It can be controlled manually or autonomously by the PGCS.The Edge Autonomy Factory company in Latvia has designed and manufactured the PGCS.A single operator can manage the vehicle and its payloads."The Penguin B is designed to flexibly fit both military and commercial applications," the company says.The PGCS is easy to configure for autopilot operations.Includes a 13-inch Panasonic CF-31 laptop, a secondary 17-inch touch screen for payload, state-of-the-art battery power systems, GPS tracking antennas, video receivers, an RC transmitter mouse, an optional joystick and other auxiliary equipment.A four-stroke Honda engine with a power output of between 1.3 and 2.5 hp powers the unmanned aerial vehicle.The aircraft has a tricycle-type fixed landing gear system with two main gear legs, one steerable nose gear leg, and oleo-pneumatic shock absorbers.The Penguin B has a maximum speed of 129 km/h, with a maximum service height of 5,000 meters and a takeoff distance of 30 meters.According to the company's website, the aircraft has a maximum flight time of more than 20 hours.The Penguin C long-range aircraft system is built on the reliable Penguin B UAS airframe platform, which has been in use since 2012.The military can employ this unmanned aircraft system for routine checks, surveillance, object tracking, detection of small moving targets, and intelligence gathering.In March 2019, the Latvian National Armed Forces ordered Penguin C.With its autonomous parachute launch and recovery systems, the Penguin C is a runway-independent aircraft that can operate in remote locations with limited infrastructure.A portable pneumatic catapult launcher is available for launching the aircraft.In less than an hour, the drone can be assembled and launched by two crew members.The Penguin C UAS also features a payload of electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) sensors that enable it to perform surveillance, object tracking and intelligence operations.Epsilon's day/night gyro gimbals, such as the 140, 135 HD Day, 140Z and 175, can be fully incorporated into the unmanned aircraft system thanks to motorized retraction and anti-vibration damping.The Penguin C's portable ground control system features a military-grade, dual-touchscreen display unit that enables operations in adverse weather conditions.The Penguin C UAS is powered by a 28cc Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI) engine running on 98 octane fuel.The on-board engine cooling system allows operation in sub-zero temperatures and extreme heat.© 2019 - 2022 All rights reserved.© 2019 - 2022 All rights reserved.