Engineering:Indonesian Aerospace Elang Hitam

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Short description: Indonesian UCAV
Elang Hitam
Elang Hitam UAV rolled out.jpg
Elang Hitam rolled out in PT DI hangar
Role Combat UAV
National origin Indonesia
Manufacturer PT Dirgantara Indonesia
Designer BPPT, LAPAN, IAe
Status Suspended on September 15, 2022
Primary user Indonesian Armed Forces (Suspended)

The Elang Hitam (English: Black Eagle)[1] is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) being developed by PT Dirgantara Indonesia (IAe) in cooperation with a consortium of five other institutions. This drone was first shown in December 30, 2019 at the PTDI hangar, Bandung, West Java.[2]

The EH is the result of collaboration in the formation of a consortium between the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT), Ministry of Defense, Indonesian Air Force , ITB, PT Dirgantara Indonesia, and PT LEN Persero.[3]

Development history

According to PT DI and BPPT, the development of a MALE UCAV has been initiated by the Ministry of Defense's R&D since 2015 involving the TNI, Ditjen Pothan Kemhan, Ministry of Defense, BPPT, ITB, and PT Dirgantara Indonesia (Persero). This was marked by creating a design agreement, drafting the requirements and objectives (DR&O) and determining the user, in this case it would be the TNI, especially the Indonesian Air Force . During development, the UAV was formerly known as (Indonesian: Pesawat Udara Nir Awak jenis Medium Altitude Long Endurance, lit. 'Unmanned MALE aircraft').[2] Plans were made to introduce it as a UAV in 2022 before it would be further developed as a UCAV in 2024.[4]

The development started with preliminary design, basic design by making two wind tunnel models and the conclusion of test results in 2016 and 2018.[5] In 2019, LAPAN entered as a member of the consortium, and took part in the development of the MALE UCAV.[3]

The first prototype was rolled out on 30 December 2019 in the PTDI hangar.[6] First flight is expected to take place at the end of 2020. The Elang Hitam, according to its development plan, will be armed with missiles and capable of flying up to 30 hours non-stop with a cruising altitude of up to 23,000 ft. The specification is said to match the Chinese-made CH-4 Rainbow drone.[7]

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the first flight which was originally scheduled to fly for the first time in 2020 has been postponed to late 2021.[8]

On July 17, 2022, Indonesia announced a collaboration with Turkey to manufacture air-to-surface missiles that can be easily mounted on UAVs.[9] However, further development on the EH was suspended as of September 15, 2022.[10]

Specifications

Data from LAPAN,[11] BRIN,[12] IAe[13] SINDOgrafis[14]

General characteristics

  • Capacity: 300 kg (661 lb)
  • Length: 8.65 m (28 ft 5 in)
  • Wingspan: 16 m (52 ft 6 in)
  • Height: 2.6 m (8 ft 6 in)
  • Empty weight: 575 kg (1,268 lb)
  • Max takeoff weight: 1,300 kg (2,866 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Rotax 915 iS turbocharged engine , 104 kW (139 hp)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 235 km/h (146 mph, 127 kn)
  • Range: 250 km (160 mi, 130 nmi) LOS
  • Endurance: 30 hours
  • Service ceiling: 9.144 m (30.000 ft)

Avionics

Armaments

  • IAe 70 mm rocket
  • MAM-L
  • MAM-C

References

  1. "What's in Indonesia First Indigenous Medium-Range Strike Capable Drone?". https://thediplomat.com/2019/12/whats-in-indonesia-first-indigenous-medium-range-strike-capable-drone/. 
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Indonesia Launches Domestically-built Armed UAV Program". https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/defense/2020-01-03/indonesia-launches-domestically-built-armed-uav-program. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 "BPPT Pamer Drone Pertahanan Buatan Indonesia" (in id). CNN Indonesia. 2019-12-30. https://www.cnnindonesia.com/teknologi/20191230134942-199-460998/bppt-pamer-drone-pertahanan-buatan-indonesia. 
  4. https://gbp.com.sg/stories/indonesia-to-speed-up-development-of-elang-hitam-ucav/
  5. "Drone Elang Hitam Inovasi BPPT dan Konsorsium Lokal, Tampil di Pameran Industri Pertahanan" (in id). 2020-01-24. https://www.bppt.go.id/siaran-pers/3843-sp-010-i-2020-drone-elang-hitam-inovasi-bppt-dan-konsorsium-lokal-tampil-di-pameran-industri-pertahanan. 
  6. Siregar, Efrem (2019-12-30). "Ngeri! RI Punya Drone 'Mata-Mata' Bernama Elang Hitam" (in id). CNBC Indonesia. https://www.cnbcindonesia.com/news/20191230120036-4-126423/ngeri-ri-punya-drone-mata-mata-bernama-elang-hitam. 
  7. "Drone Elang Hitam Siap Diakselerasi 2 Tahun untuk Uji Terbang" (in id). 2020-01-27. https://www.bppt.go.id/siaran-pers/3850-sp-013-i-2020-drone-elang-hitam-siap-diakselerasi-2-tahun-untuk-uji-terbang. 
  8. "PUNA MALE Elang Hitam Ditargetkan Terbang Perdana Agustus 2021 | Ekonomi". 2021-01-28. https://ekonomi.bisnis.com/read/20210128/257/1349449/puna-male-elang-hitam-ditargetkan-terbang-perdana-agustus-2021. 
  9. "Indonesia collaborates with Turkey on UAV-mounted air-to-surface missiles". https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/indonesia-collaborates-with-turkey-on-uav-mounted-air-to-surface-missiles. 
  10. "Indonesia pulls plug on strike-capable military UAV programme". https://www.janes.com/defence-news/news-detail/indonesia-pulls-plug-on-strike-capable-military-uav-programme. 
  11. "Ini Kecanggihan Elang Hitam, "Drone" Indonesia yang Tak Kalah dengan Buatan Amerika". LAPAN. 12 February 2021. https://www.lapan.go.id/post/6951/ini-kecanggihan-elang-hitam-drone-indonesia-yang-tak-kalah-dengan-buatan-amerika. 
  12. "Inovesia Triwulan 1 Januari-Maret 2020". BRIN. December 2020. https://www.brin.go.id/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Inovesia-Triwulan-I.pdf. 
  13. "PT. Dirgantara Indonesia (Persero)". https://www.indonesian-aerospace.com/news/detail/892_indonesia+introduced+black+eagle%2C+unmanned+aircraft. 
  14. Prisni, I Made Adhisanu (24 October 2020). "Drone Indonesia Elang Hitam Akan Dipadu Amunisi Presisi Turki". SINDOgrafis. https://infografis.sindonews.com/photo/2458/drone-indonesia-elang-hitam-akan-dipadu-amunisi-presisi-turki-1603481105.