Albatross: The Affordable, Long Range Drone
Flight Time
4 Hours
Cruise Speed
20 m/s
Max Range
250 km
Max Wind
30 mph
Ecryption
256 bit AES
Payloads
10 + options
Introduced in 2014, the Albatross stands out as the pioneering drone tailored specifically to cater to the needs of businesses and research institutions, irrespective of their size. Our drone offers a robust, long-range platform at an affordable price point. With an impressive flight endurance of up to 4 hours, a 10kg MTOW (Maximum Takeoff Weight), and complete openness for customization, the Albatross proves equally suitable for cutting-edge research and development endeavors and commercial operations.
As of now, the Albatross can be found in over 50 countries, engaging in diverse applications such as marine life conservation, humanitarian aid, asset management, surveillance, and precision agriculture.
Tailored to You
Experience the ultimate in advanced and flexible drone technology with our Albatross design. From takeoff to landing, the Albatross operates autonomously, guided by an onboard laser altimeter. This drone seamlessly integrates with the user-friendly PX4 software, allowing you to plan missions, monitor progress, and analyze results directly from your base station.
Our Albatross software is open source, providing you with unparalleled control. This platform is compatible with a wide range of commercially available payloads and sensors, giving you the freedom to tailor your drone to meet your specific mission requirements. We prioritize empowering you, our valued customer, with the flexibility to choose how the Albatross can best assist you in achieving your goals.
Key Features
Composite Airframe: A sleek and durable composite frame. Albatross UAV is comprised of carbon fiber and fiberglass.
4 hour endurance: Albatross was designed in house to be the most efficient airframe of its kind. Our optimized all-electric setup is quiet and has a flight time of up to 4 hours.
Modular Payloads: Our dedicated payload bay and highly customizable set up supports the best mapping, surveillance and NDVI cameras on the market.
Open Source Software: Applied Aeronautics participates in the PX4 ecosystem, the professional open source autopilot system.
5G Connectivity: We understand that connectivity is critical to success in BVLOS operations, that’s why we partnered with Elsight to offer their redundant Halo system onboard Albatross UAV.
Safety First: Albatross provides a variety of built in safety features like lost-link, low battery RTL and redundant communications.
Remote ID Ready: We know how important it is to stay up to date on the latest regulations. Albatross UAV is an FAA approved Standard Remote ID Drone.
BVLOS Approved: Albatross has been approved by both the FAA, Transport Canada and international CAA’s for BVLOS operations.
The Albatross is a long range fixed wing UAV that offers fully autonomous single button operation from takeoff through landing. Watch this video for a demonstration.
Why the Albatross?
Affordable
We believe that drones will revolutionize modern business, but this can only happen if the technology is accessible. That's why we created a professional drone solution without the professional price tag. The Albatross starts as low as $2000, a fraction the cost of the closet competing drone and pennies when compared to manned alternatives like a helicopter or manned aircraft. DIY Kits start at $3,999 and fully assembled Ready to Fly systems are available from $7,500.
Long Range Fixed Wing UAV
The high aspect fixed wing drone is simply the best choice for long range missions with large data collection requirements. This is in part because enhanced operational efficiency translates into longer flight times, greater range and more coverage per mission. Multi-rotors simply can't compete with that.
Our long range fixed wing drone is ideal for a range of applications including:
Long Range ISR
Search and Rescue
Aerial Surveying
Precision Agriculture
Asset Management
Pipeline Inspections
Disaster Planning & Response
Modular & Open Source
Our experience has demonstrated that there’s simply no one size fits all drone solution. So, we designed an open, highly customizable system that is able to adapt to our customers evolving needs.
While we took the time to carefully select every component from servos to autopilots, we also made sure that the Albatross could operate using endless avionics and sensors. This allows for upgrades and repairs as technology advances or your needs change.
Robust Capabilities
The Albatross UAV offers robust capabilities in a sleek package. It can travel for over 200 km reaching top speeds of 129 km/hr, carry up to 4.4 kg of additional payload and fly for up to 4 hrs on battery power alone without ever needing to land to recharge. The Albatross was also designed with features like an inverted v-tail to increase stability in banked turns and cross winds making it a great option for work in inclement weather.
Mission Specific Payloads
Our modular payload bay makes swapping out cameras and sensors a breeze. We offer three turn key packages for surveying/mapping, vegetation analysis and surveillance, as well as custom solutions upon request.
MICASENSE REDEDGE
Uses: Precision Agriculture
SONY A6000
Uses: Surveying
COLIBRI 2 - EO/IR
Uses: Surveillance, Search and Rescue, Reconnaissance
MAPIR NDVI
Uses: Precision Agriculture, Research and Development
FLIR DUO PRO
Uses: Surveillance, Search and Rescue, Reconnaissance, Asset Inspections
FLIR VUE PRO
Uses: Surveillance, Search and Rescue, Reconnaissance, Asset Inspections
Efficient. Affordable. Purpose Built.
The Fuselage
Our fuselage is not only aerodynamic, but also provides a massive amount of usable space. The fuselage was built in a slight trapezoidal shape to minimize fuselage/wing intersection, drag and interference. It was also designed to be efficient in cooling. It was designed with a high pressure region in the nose and a low pressure region behind the wing, on top and below the motor mounting area. This acts to create a pressure differential, essentially "pulling" air through the fuselage. The layout allows for smarter cooling, by cooling off lower temperature components towards the front, and higher temperature components in the rear (motor). The cooling exhaust placement was purposely in an area with turbulent airflow, so as to not disturb the otherwise laminar airflow over the rest of the fuselage.
The Wings
The wing consists of an optimized foil and a forward swept planform designed to ensure low stall speeds, high max efficiency and a large cruise window. This design also reduces the chance of tip stalling on approach. The Albatross wing has a high aspect ratio of 13.6. Although possible to go with a higher aspect ratio, we chose not to. By maintaining our aspect ratio at 13.6, it allows our custom in house foil selection to be tailored for a wider flight envelope. It also allows us to remain within our 3m size constraint, while maintaining adequate wing area. The wing has two built in component bays allowing for adequate separation of receivers, transmitters and GPS units. Finally, the drooped wing tips are designed to reduce drag via the reduction of tip vortices, as well as increase aileron effectiveness at near-stall conditions.
Assembly
The number one reason for keeping airframes small is due to transportation and storage. The Albatross UAV is designed to be easily transported, taken apart and stored. Not only does this make things easier for the end user, but it also reduces shipping costs door to door.
THE TAIL
The tail is an inverted V, which improves efficiency while decreasing drag. This V shape is also naturally more stable in banked and coordinated turns. Finally, it allows for a twin tail boom design and large diameter propeller while also raising ground clearance of the tail on landing and takeoff.
Wingspan: 3 meters
Fuselage: 740 mm x 200 mm x 150 mm
Endurance: Up to 4 hrs (varies based on operating conditions, battery configuration and use case)
Range: Up to 280 km (varies based on operation conditions, battery configuration and use case)
Cruise Speed: 68 km/hr
Bare Weight: 3.5 kg
Dry Weight: 4.4 kg
Lithium Ion Battery Weight: 1.2 kg (per battery)
MTOW: 10+ kg
Max Speed: 129 km/hr
Motor Type: Electric
RC Frequency: 2.4 GHz (standard range), 433 MHz (long range)
Telemetry Frequency: 915 MHz
Takeoff Requirements: 50-100 m (runway, unpaved road, catapult, grass)
Glide Ratio (L/D): 28:1 - 30:1
Center of Gravity: 85 mm - 95 mm from the root leading edge
Composition: Carbon fiber and fiberglass composite
Casia Sense and Avoid Technology
In partnership with Iris Automation, we’re proud to offer Casia Sense and Avoid Technology. Casia is the first commercially available computer vision detect-and-avoid solution to enable Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) operations for autonomous vehicles and Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS), to truly understand the aviation environment around it as if a pilot were onboard. CASIA and Albatros were approved for the first true commercial BVLOS operation without the use of ground based radar or visual observers in 2019.
