MOSCOW, May 24. /TASS-DEFENSE/. The Chkalov Aircraft Plant in Novosibirsk held frequency trials of the prototype of Okhotnik drone, the Siberian Aviation Research Institute (SibNIA) said: “In May 2022, the Chkalov affiliate of the Sukhoi company held frequency trials of the prototype of the prospective Russian Okhotnik unmanned aerial vehicle with the use of the elastic jacking system designed by SibNIA,” it said.

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S-70 Okhotnik made its maiden 20-minute flight on August 3, 2019. It then made a flight together with a Su-57 fighter jet. (Picture source: Russian MoD)

Frequency trials are the final stage of aircraft design. They are held to rule out the possibility of dangerous aeroelastic resonance vibrations and obtain vibration data of all glider elements in order to forecast the conduct of the aircraft in a flutter. The prototype with all onboard systems and mechanisms was tested.

The elastic jacking imitates a horizontal flight. It does not affect the dynamic characteristics during trials. Its size does not impede the withdrawal and release of chassis and the movement of deflecting surfaces. SibNIA said its small-sized system can conduct frequency trials of any Sukhoi aircraft.

Okhotnik S-70 stealth drone has a hybrid wing. The takeoff weight is 20 tons and the maximum speed is close to 1,000 km/h. Okhotnik made the maiden 20-minute flight on August 3, 2019. It then made a flight together with a Su-57 fighter jet. Batch production of the drone is to begin in 2023.

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