Kraus Hamdani Aerospace says its K1000ULE drone has been selected for a major US Army programme of record, a long-term, budgeted Army purchase. Under the award, the California company will supply the aircraft for reconnaissance, surveillance and target acquisition.
The K1000ULE is a fully electric Group 2 drone, the class for aircraft of about 10 to 25 kg. It takes off and lands vertically and recharges its batteries in flight with solar panels on its wings. The company says one flew for more than 75 hours without landing in 2023, a record for its weight class, and US Army units have flown it in exercises in Washington state and the Philippines.
Earlier this year, US Air Forces Central gave the company a contract worth up to $270 million, and the company says the Army award builds on it. Chief executive and co-founder Fatema Hamdani said the announcement, right after Veterans Day, means a lot to the team, many of whom are veterans.
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K1000ULE
Reconnaissance drone
Kraus Hamdani Aerospace's fully electric Group 2 drone, which takes off vertically and has solar panels on its wings.
