[SatNews] This exhibition in Rio de Janeiro was the perfect venue for the debut of this new unmanned aircraft...

Spanish company Tekplus Aerospace used the LAAD 2011 exhibition in Rio de Janeiro to unveil a new VTOL UAV. Dubbed the Centauro, the UAV has been in development for two years and is currently undergoing flight tests in Spain. The company expects to display the aircraft in its final configuration, along with the complete GCS and integrated payload at the Paris Air Show in June. Tekplus Aerospace international manager Marta Sineiro said the aircraft had been designed to be as versatile as possible and could then be adapted for the specific customer requirements. It is aimed at such applications as ISTAR, border control, maritime and road traffic control and early detection of forest fires. The system can transmit visible and IR video in real time and other payloads such as synthetic aperture radar (SAR), hyperspectral cameras and laser designator. Sineiro said the Centauro, which has been developed purely from internal company funds, had also been designed to be easily integrated with the URO Vamtac vehicle, which would transport both the airframe and GCS. The company also claims the autopilot was one of the most advanced on the market with redundancies in all functions. The aircraft, which is 3.35m in length and has a 3.5m rotor diameter, is capable of carrying a 25kg payload and has a maximum take-off weight of 85kg. The 26HP motor provides four to six hours of endurance, a range of 75km/h and a maximum speed of 120km/h.