A FanWing Ltd Fanwing unmanned air vehicle has demonstrated that it can rotate at 1m (3ft). The Fanwing aircraft uses a bladed rotor turning on a horizontal axis, which acts as a thick wing.
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Above: The short take off Fanwing flies during an April trial | |
This very short take off version is designed for urban operations where runway space would be very limited. The UAV, made from composite materials, has a 2kg (4.4lb) payload capability, combined wing/rotor span of 2.4m, a dry weight of 5.5kg, a 12kg maximum take off weight, a 1.2kW engine and a flight speed of 15.5kt (28.8km/h).
Its development goal is an 80min autonomous flight capability.
The England-based FanWing was set up in 1999 to develop blade wing technologies.