The Arcturus T-20 was initially developed as a private venture by the Arcturus-UAV LLC concern of California, USA and furthered by the US Air Force Research Laboratory. Arcturus-UAV LLC, as its name suggests, is a developer of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) featured in both commercial and military applications. Today, the firm markets three distinct models of UAVs made up of the "T-15", "T-16" and - its largest UAV design to date - the "T-20". The T-20 is classified as a medium-range, reusable reconnaissance UAV which dictates a payload of advanced sensors, cameras and other applicable surveillance, tracking and monitoring equipment. First flight of the T-20 was recorded in 2008 while the United States military evaluated the system in early 2009. To date some 10 have been delivered while a full complement of 160 is ultimately expected.
Design of the T-20 is of a conventional aircraft nature with the airframe constructed largely of composites. Its design is characterized by its slab-sided fuselage capped with a nose-mounted engine installation and a traditional "T-style" tail assembly at the rear. Avionics are housed in the aft portion of the fuselage while fuel is stored throughout the wings. The empennage is made up of a single large vertical tail rudder completed with a horizontal tail surface at its extreme top. The main wing assemblies are shoulder-mounted which allow for strong lift capabilities (especially at launch) and good ground clearance overall (with four underwing hardpoints available for parachuting "drop pods"). Each wing is straight in their design and feature clipped wingtips. The internal fuselage bay can house up to 65lbs while a modular pallet system allows awaiting ground personnel the capability to replace existing payloads within minutes, getting the T-20 back airborne in the shortest amount of time possible. An onboard camera suite allows for real-time relay of the visual feed to the applicable ground station and offers an unobstructed 360-degree field-of-view (FOV). The T-20 is also completed with integrated electro-optical, infrared and target laser systems as well as a GPS-based autopilot which can autonomously navigate preset waypoints.
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The T-20 airframe enjoys a full wingspan of 17.25 feet with a running length of 9.4 feet and is powered by a single fuel-injected, 4-stroke gasoline engine of 10 horsepower fitted to the nose, this managing a two-bladed propeller. Top listed speed is 104 miles per hour with a cruise speed of 63 miles per hour. The T-20s configuration allows for a mission endurance time of over 16 hours (this with a 35lb payload - up to 500 miles at altitudes of 15,000 feet). Empty weight is listed at 80lbs while a full mission load sees the T-20 weigh in at 165lbs.
While the T-20 lacks any integrated undercarriage facilities, the aircraft is allowed airborne via the included pneumatic portable catapult. This launch system is formally designated by Arcturus as the "Portable Launching System" (PLS) and can be set up for UAV operations from land or sea-based naval vessels - literally anywhere in the world where a flat landing surface can be found for the UAVs recovery. The Arcturus T-20 can land in one of two ways - via a prepared net arrangement or along its belly on a skid. This allows the T-20 to operate just about anywhere it has the space to both launch and be recovered and does not require the prepared runaway facilities of its larger, more expensive brethren.
(OPERATORS list includes past, present, and future operators when applicable)
✓Intelligence-Surveillance-Reconnaissance (ISR), Scout
Surveil ground targets / target areas to assess environmental threat levels, enemy strength, or enemy movement.
✓Unmanned Capability
Aircraft inherently designed (or later developed) with an unmanned capability to cover a variety of over-battlefield roles.
Length
9.5 ft (2.90 m)
Width/Span
17.4 ft (5.30 m)
Height
3.3 ft (1.00 m)
Empty Wgt
110 lb (50 kg)
MTOW
187 lb (85 kg)
Wgt Diff
+77 lb (+35 kg)
(Showcased structural values pertain to the base Arcturus T-20 production variant)
Installed:
1 x Aviation Gasoline AvGas 110LL 4-stroke engine developing 10 horsepower and driving a two-bladed propeller at the nose.
None. Modular payload of up to 65lb. 4 x underwing hardpoints for mission drop pods.
Hardpoint Mountings: 4
T-20 - Base Series Designation
T-20 Block I - Carburetor equipped
T-20 Block II - Fuel-injection equipped
T-20A - Provision for underwing pods
T-20R - Research Variant
Ribbon graphics not necessarily indicative of actual historical campaign ribbons. Ribbons are clickable to their respective aerial campaigns / operations / aviation periods.
Images Gallery
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Close-up view of the Arcturus T-20 UAV ready for flight
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The Arcturus T-20 UAV on its full catapult launch stand
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