Russia has announced the development of the S-71 jet UAV, which is to be launched from Su-57 aircraft. As reported by Defence Express, this is not an original idea of the Russians, but a copy of the developments of Western countries, UNN writes.
According to the publication, the flight speed of the S-71 is likely to reach up to Mach 0.6, and the flight altitude - up to 8 thousand meters. These UAVs will be powered by the TRDD-50 jet engine, the same as the X-101 and Kalibr cruise missiles.
Defence Express emphasizes that the Russians decided to copy similar developments from Western countries, in particular the United States, which were actually the first to promote the idea of including drones in the armament of fifth-generation fighters.
The publication also notes that it would be easier to call the S-71 cruise missiles regardless of their functionality. However, judging by the intentions of Russian developers, these S-71s are intended to be reusable devices
At the same time, it is not yet known how these S-71s should be landed in order to reuse these suspended jet drones for new missions.
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Oleksandr Ruvin, Director of Kyiv Scientific Research Institute of Forensic Expertise, previously confirmed that the enemy has started using new drones, which are likely to be used to track air defense systems and collect information.
"We have information about new drones used by Russia. Cases of their use are currently isolated. It is known that they are visually very similar to Shahed-type kamikaze drones, but do not carry explosives. This probably means that, unlike strike UAVs, which carry out strikes, the new samples found are designed to track our air defense systems, collect information, and record damage as a result of missile and attack attacks by strike UAVs. More detailed information will be available after the relevant examinations are scheduled and the objects are transferred for research," Ruvin said.