Indonesia's Combat Drone Weaponry Equal to Air Force's F-16
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27 January 2020 08:25 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian combat drone dubbed “Elang Hitam” or black eagle, which was jointly developed by the Agency for the Assessment and Application of Technology (BPPT) and six other state-agencies, is set to be equipped with the 70-millimeter Folding-fin Aerial Rocket (FFAR).
The combat drone’s FFAR is domestically produced by the State-owned aircraft manufacturer PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI), which currently arms Indonesian air force’s F-16 fleets.
The weapon will be tested in the drone’s test run starting this year as the medium altitude long endurance drone was first rolled-out of PTDI’s hangar in late December of 2019.
However, this should not come as a surprise as at the time the drone was introduced, PTDI technology and development director, Gita Amperiawan, said; “We will integrate the Elang Hitam with the FFAR.”
The combat drone’s inaugural test flight will be followed by other tests to obtain certification among three other prototypes that have been built, “This one [will undergo testing], the second one will go for certification, the third will undergo static test, and the fourth will undergo combatant certification,” said PTDI president-director Elfien Goentoro on December 30.
Other consortium members of the combat drone include the BPPT, Indonesian Air Force, the Defense Ministry, and Bandung Institute of Technology (ITB).
AHMAD FIKRI (CONTRIBUTOR)