Expert

Notes: This Russian mini-RPV is made for use at company-level and above for immediate reconnaissance of battlefields and avenues of approach. It is a light system with capabilities far outweighing its size, almost equal in capability to many Western UAV in the same class.

Twilight 2000 Notes: These were in short supply during the Twilight War, mostly used by Russian special operations forces and intelligence agents.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$2,875

G, AvG

11.25 kg

40 kg

2

3

Image Intensification

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

105

140 (55)

NA 65 6/4 60/40

12.5

2.1

4500

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Takeoff/Landing

GPS, Autonomous Function, Manual Control (Radio Link, 40 km)

Video Camera, Still Camera, Mapping Camera, Secure Radio

Takeoff: Catapult; Landing: Parachute

Ka-37

Notes: This was the Russians' first VTOL UAV, first flown in 1993. It did not see much military use until the Twilight War, but hundreds were sold to farmers, who fitted them with belly tanks and agricultural sprayers for crop dusting. The Ka-37 was largely replaced in military service with the larger and more capable Ka-137.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$14,700

G, AvG

50 kg

250 kg

2

3

(Military Only) Image Intensification

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

110

190

15/90

30

40

2990

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Armament

Takeoff/Landing

Autopilot, Manual Control (Radio Link, 6 km)

Video Camera, Still Camera

1 Hardpoint

9m Primitive Runway

Ka-137

This vehicle has often been described as toy-like, with a body shaped like a ball with four landing legs and a double rotor system. It is in a similar class with the CL-327, being an unconventional design. It is surprisingly fast and agile, and a good reconnaissance platform. It was used mainly by the Russian Navy and by border guards, as well as the KGB.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$16,500

G, AvG

50 kg

280 kg

3

4

Image Intensification, Passive IR

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

120

210

5/100

33

8.25

3500

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Armament

Takeoff/Landing

Autonomous Function, Manual Control (Radio Link, 50 km)

Video Camera, Still Camera, Secure Radio, Real-Time Camera Link

1 Hardpoint

7m Primitive Runway

Pchela-1T

Notes: This Russian reconnaissance drone was designed in the late 1980s, and saw extensive use in Chechnya. It is also known as the Yak-61 Shmel. The system was designed originally for use by Airborne and Naval Infantry troops, and the control center and launcher are mounted on BTR-D airborne combat vehicles. These vehicles are used for tactical reconnaissance as well as target designation.

Twilight 2000 Notes: Models of this vehicle were also supplied to the Iraqis, and used during the Twilight War. Captured models were also used by Kuwait.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$9,300

G, AvG

27.2 kg

129 kg

3

3

(Optional) FLIR

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

95

160 (65)

NA 75 6/4 60/40

27

13.5

2900

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Takeoff/Landing

Autonomous Function, Autopilot, Manual Control (Radio Link, 50 km)

Video Camera, Still Camera, Real-Time Camera Link, Secure Radio, Laser Designator

Takeoff: Catapult; Landing: Parachute

Tu-141 Strizh

Notes: This medium-range, high-speed UAV was first produced by Russia in the mid-1970s and was produced until 1983. After that, it was retired to Category 2 and 3 units and sold liberally to allied nations. Despite its size, the electronics in the Strizh are quite crude and basic.

Twilight 2000 Notes: This UAV was encountered quite frequently over the Middle East, Central America, China, and North Korea during the Twilight War.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$382,000

AvG

550 kg

5.38 tons

4

10

Passive IR, Radar

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

1030

1785 (350)

NA 870 4/2 40/20

2700

695

6000

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Takeoff/Landing

Autonomous Function, Manual Control (Radio Link, 1000 km)

2xVideo Cameras, 2xStill Cameras, Geiger Counter, Real-Time Sensor Link

Takeoff: Rail w/RATO Booster; Landing: Parachute or Parafoil

Tu-143 Reis

Notes: This is a more modern Russian reconnaissance drone, one that has also been liberally sold to allied countries throughout the world. It uses the VR-3 reconnaissance system, an upgrade of the VR-2 system used on the Strizh. It uses a more advanced guidance system able to use nap-of-the-earth flight, but not true TERCOM (the NOE guidance requires accurate preprogrammed mapping information). The Tu-143 was first flown in 1982, and over 1000 were produced in the next 7 years, before it was replaced in production by the Tu-243 Reis-D (q.v.). The Reis is a semi-stealth system, reducing the effectiveness of radar and radar-guided missiles by one level, and IR systems by one level.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$125,000

AvG

200 kg

1.6 tons

4

9

Image Intensification, Radar

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

865

1500 (295)

NA 730 5/3 50/30

800

960

2000

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Takeoff/Landing

Autonomous Function, Autopilot, Manual Control (Radio Link, 95 km)

2xVideo Cameras, 2xStill Cameras, Geiger Counter, Chemical Sniffer, Real Time Sensor Link

Takeoff: Rail w/RATO Booster; Landing: Parachute or Parafoil

Tu-243 Reis-D

Notes: This reconnaissance drone replaced the Tu-143 in Russian and Pact service, and was also used by Iraq, Iran, and India. It is an improved version of the Tu-143, with a more efficient engine, better stealth features (effectiveness of radar and IR reduced by two steps), and a better sensor package. At its normal cruising altitude of 500 meters, the Reis-D's cameras have a resolution of 0.15 meters, with resolution going down with increases in altitude. It can simultaneously take pictures through day and night channels.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Ground Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$144,000

AvG

200 kg

1.6 tons

3

8

Thermal Imaging, Image Intensification, Radar

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

880

1525 (275)

NA 740 6/4 60/40

800

350

5000

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Takeoff/Landing

Autonomous Function, Autopilot, TERCOM, Manual Control (Radio Link, 180 km)

2xVideo Cameras, 2xStill Cameras, Geiger Counter, Optical Chemical Sniffer, Motion Detector, Real Time Sensor Link, 4xChaff Bundles, 4xIR Flares

Takeoff: Rail w/RATO Booster; Landing: Parachute, Parafoil

Yak-60

Notes: This is a battlefield reconnaissance and EW drone first flown by the Russians in 1983. It has long been retired from service in favor of the more capable Pchela-1T and Pchela-1M, but still equips Category 3 and Mobilization-Only units, as well as the countries of many allies and Third-World nations. It is a basic drone with day-only cameras that can also jam enemy radar and radio communications. (Enemy radar and radio units operate at one level greater difficulty within 15 km of the Yak-60.) The drone is launched and serviced from modified MT-LB armored personnel carriers.

Price

Fuel Type

Load

Veh Wt

Crew

Mnt

Night Vision

$7,300

G, AvG

24 kg

102 kg

3

4

None

Tr Mov

Com Mov

Mnvr/Acc Agl/Turn

Fuel Cap

Fuel Cons

Ceiling

170

290 (80)

NA 140 5/3 50/30

18

9

1000

Guidance/Control

Sensors/Equipment

Takeoff/Landing

Autonomous Function, Manual Control (Radio Link, 37 km)

Video Camera, Still Camera, Delayed Camera Link

Takeoff: Catapult; Landing: Parachute