AME's Fury 1500 has completed a 14h flight, the aircraft's greatest duration thus far, as part of a flight test programme in advance of deployment to an undisclosed location.
AME is currently 100h deep in a 200h test programme, with a sign-off from the undisclosed customer expected shortly.
"We're doing a series of flights to see that we can meet the [15h] requirement," said Jay McConville, AME chairman. McConville added that the aircraft could likely reach 16h duration without trouble, and possibly longer.
"We're getting better fuel efficiency than we thought we would," said McConville.
The catapult-launched unmanned air vehicle, which first flew in November 2010, has undergone substantial modifications of late, including a new wing and heavy fuel engine.
Source: Flight International
