The National Police announced this Wednesday that it has begun the tests of an Autonomous Air Vehicle (AAV). It is the Ehang 216 , a 600 kg drone that is piloted remotely and can transport up to two people to areas difficult to access for a conventional helicopter.
The Spanish police force, which already has an anti-drone rifle, has presented the drone at the ExpoDrónica fair of the World ATM Congress. “We are very interested in determining what type of missions we can use it for. We are sure that it will be very useful to enter areas contaminated by CBRN risk,” says a member of the National Police in the video posted on Twitter.
The aircraft, nicknamed “ megadron “, has been transferred to the National Police by Ehang, a Chinese company with extensive experience in the air taxi sector, which offers solutions both within its own borders and in Japan and South Korea. It even has specific models for emergency situations.
A versatile, manned and autonomous drone
This type of AAV offers an interesting set of characteristics, now available to the National Police. The Ehang 216, whose length is 5.61m, is prepared to withstand a maximum payload of 220 kg . It can also fly at a maximum speed of 130 km / h and has a range of 35 km on a charge.
The EHang is a fully electric drone. It can be charged with a 220 or 380 volt power supply. Charging completes in 1 hour at the fastest speed. In addition, the chargers can communicate in real time with the drone's battery management system (BMS).
Credit: ExpoDrónica One of the advantages of this drone is that it does not require additional infrastructure to function. That is, does not need a runway or an airport . Just the space necessary to take off or land vertically. Although, yes, in Spain it will require a permit from the State Air Safety Agency, which is in process, according to El Mundo.
Like other AAVs, the one belonging to the National Police is remotely piloted . Communication between the aircraft and the command and control center is carried out through 4G or 5G connections. It also has security systems that seek to protect passengers against handling errors caused by man, malfunction or loss of connection.
