Russia's new Okhotnik UAV goes through final tests

Specialists of the Novosibirsk Aviation Plant named after V. P. Chkalov conducted frequency response tests of a prototype of the Russian Okhotnik (Hunter) attack drone, the press service of the Siberian Research Institute of Aviation (SibNIA) named after Chaplygin (part of the Zhukovsky Institute Research Center) said, TASS reports.

"In May 2022, frequency response tests of the prototype of the prospective Russian unmanned aerial vehicle Okhotnik were carried out at the branch of JSC Sukhoi Company - NAP named after V. P. Chkalov. The tests were conducted with the use of the elastic suspension system developed at SibNIA,” the institute said.

Frequency response tests are conducted as the final stage in aircraft development. They make it possible to eliminate a possibility of dangerous aeroelastic resonant vibrations and obtain data on the vibration of all elements of the airframe structure. Such tests are carried out to predict the behavior of an aircraft in the event of flutter. The tests are performed with the use of a prototype that has all standard systems and units installed.

The elastic suspension system is designed for jacking aircraft during frequency response tests. The system simulates level flight conditions. The small-sized system makes it possible to conduct frequency response tests of any Sukhoi aircraft.

Earlier, Sergey Chemezov, Director General of the Rostec State Corporation, said that the serial production of Okhotnik drones would begin in 2023.