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BAS-200 uncrewed aerial systems are planned to be used to assist icebreaker ships in the Arctic Ocean, according to a recent corporate statement from Russian defence company Russian Helicopters.
Russian Helicopters, a subsidiary of the state-owned Rostec State Corporation, has announced it is actively working to provide a marine variant of the BAS-200 unmanned helicopter.
The aerial systems are expected to be able to operate from the decks of icebreakers, conduct ice reconnaissance or search for minerals on the shelf.
Regions in which icebreaker ships operate present increased risks to traditional crewed aircraft because they don’t have common airfield and prepared take-off sites.
“The BAS-200 unmanned aircraft system has great potential for operation in the Arctic, which is confirmed in practice,” said a corporate statement from RH.
“One of the options for their use is work with the icebreaker fleet. The aircraft will be able to be based on icebreakers and operate from their board: transport cargo, conduct ice reconnaissance, search for minerals, participate in rescue operations, that is, perform a variety of mission support.
“In fact, at the moment, it is already possible to use the BAS-200 unmanned helicopter to perform these tasks.”
BAS-200 systems have reportedly undergone a series of tests in the Arctic Circle. In particular, the systems were tested with equipment for aero gravimetric and aeromagnetic surveys and confirmed the possibility of take-off and landing from the deck.
In addition, the technical solutions implemented on the BAS-200 for the automatic control system and avionics complex are planned to be used in the future to convert any manned helicopter from the line produced by the holding into a helicopter drone.
As part of the development of its unmanned aviation, the Russian Helicopters holding company is currently working on a training program for external pilots.
The BAS-200 unmanned aerial vehicle was developed by the National Helicopter Center Mil&Kamov. The maximum take-off weight of the unmanned aerial vehicle is up to 200 kilograms. Flight duration is up to four hours.
The communication channel range is up to 100 kilometres. If necessary, control of the device can be transferred from station to station, which allows increasing the communication channel range.
