Engineering:Hamaseh

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HESA Hamaseh
HESA Hamaseh.jpg
Role tactical surveillance
National origin Iran
Manufacturer Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company (HESA)
Design group HESA
First flight ?
Status In service
Primary user Iranian Armed Forces
Produced 2013–present?
Number built 30 (2013)[1]

The HESA Hamaseh (Persian: حماسه‎, romanized: Ḥamāseh, lit. 'Epic') is an Iranian tactical and reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with high flight endurance built by Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Industrial Company (HESA).[2] The Hamaseh was unveiled in 2013 and entered service in 2016.

Design

The Hamaseh is a single engine, twin-boom UAV.[3] The UAV features a bulbous forward radome; this was later reduced in size as the UAV was developed. The Hamaseh entered service with Iran in 2016.[3]

The Hamaseh can carry up to 185 kg of fuel, equipment, and payload, and has an endurance of up to 11 hours depending on configuration.[2] It is launched via runway takeoff or JATO,[2] and is recovered by runway landing or, in emergencies, a parachute.[3] The Hamaseh can follow pre-determined waypoints to control its flight.[2] Its powerplant is unknown.[3]

The Hamaseh can carry synthetic aperture radar, radar or communications jammers, and a camera. For weapons, it can carry small bombs, grenades, or rockets.[3]

Operational history

The Hamaseh at its unveiling ceremony in 2013.

The Hamaseh drone was unveiled on 9 May 2013. Ahmad Vahidi, Iran's defense minister, claimed the drone "with its stealth quality can avoid detection by the enemy."[citation needed] The Hamaseh was also claimed to be a High-Altitude Long Endurance (HALE) platform, despite being a tactical UAV.[4] The Hamaseh at its unveiling ceremony was "equipped" with what appeared to be munitions, but they were physically bolted to the wings, not mounted on hardpoints.[4]

A scale model of a modern Hamaseh UAV in 2016 with the redesigned radome.

The Hamaseh was first used during military exercises by the IRGC Ground Forces in April 2016.[4]

In 2017 HESA offered the Hamaseh for export.[3]

Operators

 Iran
  • Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps

Specifications

Data from Иранская экспозиция на МАКС-2017. Часть.2[2][lower-alpha 1]

General characteristics

  • Length: 5.05 m (16 ft 7 in)
  • Width: 9 m (29 ft 6 in)
  • Height: 1.9 m (6 ft 3 in)
  • Empty weight: 230 kg (507 lb)
  • Gross weight: 415 kg (915 lb)

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 194 km/h (121 mph, 105 kn)
  • Cruise speed: 165 km/h (103 mph, 89 kn)
  • Stall speed: 110 km/h (68 mph, 59 kn)
  • Combat range: 200 km (120 mi, 110 nmi)
  • Endurance: up to 11 h (depending on payload)
  • Service ceiling: 4,600 m (15,000 ft)
  • Rate of climb: 4 m/s (790 ft/min)

References

  1. This data is from the 2017 MAKS airshow. Specifications for the Hamaseh at the 2018 Eurasia Air Show were slightly different;[5] I don't know why or care.