IAI pitches unmanned Panther to South Korea

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) IAI and Hankuk Carbon of South Korea Are Presenting The Front Engine Panther at the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition ADEX 2015 that opens this week.

The 67-kg class tactical VTOL Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) is the latest development of IAI’s Panther family.

The FE-Panther is made of composite materials and sub-systems supplied by Hankuk Carbon and powered by a gasoline-electric hybrid propulsion system, unlike the pure-electric Panther that was presented in 2010.

The hybrid propulsion system increases the UAS’s endurance and payload by providing two different power sources, optimized to vertical takeoff/landing and cruise conditions.

To meet different needs of potential customers, both companies are also working on another gasoline-electric hybrid propulsion system under a project funded by the Korea-Israel Industrial R&D Foundation. In addition, HC and IAI consider marketing the FE-Panther to South Korean governmental entities.

In addition, the two companies have been studying the concept of a VTOL UAS for South Korean requirements.