Uncrewed Systems Technology 047 l Aergility ATLIS l AI focus l Clevon 1 UGV l Geospatial insight l Intergeo 2022 report l AUSA 2022 report I Infinity fuel cell l BeeX A.IKANBILIS l Propellers focus I Phoenix Wings Orca

108 W ith its rounded yet sleek fuselage and large horizontal tail surface, Phoenix Wings’ Orca bears a strong resemblance to the charismatic cetacean after which it is named, an impression strengthened by the paint scheme. Many large manned cargo aircraft look rather whale-like, hinting at the Orca’s intended mission. “We are focused on VTOL drones for cargo applications, and this is the debut of our new airframe, which has been designed from scratch to carry cargo,” the company’s CEO Jian ‘Jerry’ Wang says. Flight test and operations engineer Robert Iordache adds that whereas the market for aerial imagery and survey is well-established, the UAV logistics sector is still in its infancy, implying that it therefore offers greater opportunities for new entrants. Early on, it was decided to develop most of the vehicle in-house, including the airframe, flight control system, comms link and flight suite, which consists of a ground control application, a pad management app and a simulation environment for mission building. The Orca carries a maximum payload of 15 kg within its 96 litre payload bay, with a range of up to 150 km – although not at the same time – cruising at up to 110 kph. Its 2.98 m wingspan puts it just within the EASA’s 3 m limit, while its speed and mass put it well within the 34 kJ kinetic energy limit. “Our design tools optimise in this regard,” Iordache says. “The Orca flies fast, allowing a smaller wing surface area, resulting in a reasonable wing aspect ratio. Being a VTOL aircraft, you don’t have to deal with the slow-flying landing scenario.” Numerical optimisation helped to match payload mass and volume closely, and battery modules can be attached to cargo pallets to trade off payload and range December/January 2023 | Uncrewed Systems Technology Designing this UAV as a cargo carrier from the outset has allowed its developer to maximise its optimisation, writes Peter Donaldson Killer application