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Australian engineering and technology solutions provider Nova Systems has teamed up with Elbit to undertake flight trials of the Elbit Systems Skylark I-LEX unmanned aircraft system (UAS) for the Australian Army.
The start-up says its UAV systems will be able to carry payloads of 60 to 90kg at speeds of 120km/h, with a maximum range of 1,100km and fuel consumption of 21km per litre.
The mission, which completed in March, used Perimeter 8+ long-range multi-rotor drones from Ninox Robotics to transmit real-time footage both day and night, with the RFS using the data to plan outbreak detection, deployment of firefighters, and intelligence gathering on ongoing fires.
The defence prime said on Tuesday that construction is now underway on a 9,000-square-metre hub it hopes will be operational within three years.
The partnership comes after an Airservices report released last month indicated that drone use in Australia is expected to rise from 1.5 million flights per year in 2023 to 60 million in 2043, or an average of 20 per cent per year for the next 20 years.
A report by Scyne Advisory for Airservices Australia predicts that drone flights will increase by an average of 20 per cent per year for the next 20 years. Australia saw around 1.5 million drone flights in 2023.
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