SKIRON-X

SKIRON-X is Aurora Flight Sciences' Group 2 hybrid electric vertical-take-off-and-landing aircraft for extended small-UAS missions. It launches and lands vertically but transitions to fixed-wing flight for cruise, avoiding the need for a runway while carrying an integrated electro-optical and infrared sensor. The aircraft is intended for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, communications relay and research-and-development missions, with a modular nose section for alternate payloads.

The airframe has a 5-metre wingspan, a 23.4-kilogram take-off weight and a stated payload capacity of 2.26 kilograms. Aurora reports endurance above 3.5 hours and command-and-control range up to 75 kilometres. A two-person crew can transport the system in a pickup truck and prepare it in less than 10 minutes. Beyond-visual-line-of-sight use depends on the relevant aviation approval or waiver; the published range does not by itself establish permission to operate beyond the pilot's sight.