This was reported to Ukrinform by Serhii Baraban, head of the SikorskyChallenge startup school in Vinnytsia, candidate of technical sciences and associate professor of the Department of Computer Science at the National Technical University.

“This is the development of participants of the Sikorsky Challenge startup school based on the National Technical University of Vinnytsia; the CEO is the student Mykhailo Bondarchuk. Escadron is a special subtype of unmanned aerial vehicles. Given the functional characteristics, it can have a wide specific application in the field of defense, in fact, the army can replace their core functions and complement capabilities in terms of combat mission effectiveness.” said.

As stated in VNTU, the main priority tasks of using the platform are the transportation of cargo (ammunition) to the position and the removal of the wounded from the battlefield. The platform can also be used as a ground “kamikaze”. Additionally, the Escadron can serve as a remote observation point and be used for repeater installation.

The operator can control the drone from a distance of one to three kilometers, depending on its configuration. The platform can move at a maximum speed of 30 km per hour.

Developers believe that in the future the ground drone can be adapted for use with a combat module (turret) or ground-penetrating radar to detect explosive objects.

The Escadron startup project became the winner and won the VIII Round of Vinnytsia Startup School. In the final of the season he received the nomination “Best Startup Idea” and received 30,000 UAH for its further development. In October, it was presented at the XII Festival of Innovation Projects “Sikorsky Challenge 2023”, held at KPI in October. Igor Sikorsky is at the Kiev Polytechnic Institute named after Igor Sikorsky.

Photo: VNTU