FusionFlight’s AB5 JetQuad is touted as the world’s first jet-powered VTOL drone. This means the team replaced the traditional four electric motors and propellers with four diesel-powered micro-turbine jet engines that produce a combined 200 horsepower at full throttle. It uses a proprietary vectoring system, called the H-Configuration, to direct thrust from these engines for vertical movement when taking off / landing or horizontally while in flight.
The production model is projected to have a top speed of over 300 mph and with a full 5-gallon (19-l) fuel tank, it should be good for 30 minutes of hovering or 15 minutes of flight. Future upgrades could include afterburners that would increase its top speed dramatically. As for payload, it has a maximum capacity of 40-pounds. Expect the production model to be available some time in 2021, priced between $200,000 – $250,000 depending on the options chosen.
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The jet engines can put out significantly more power then electrically-driven propellers and also allow the vehicle to travel at much higher speeds. Diesel fuel, on a pound-for-pound basis, stores 40 times more energy then any lithium-type battery and also will take minutes to refuel instead of the hours it takes to recharge an electrical drone,” said FusionFlight CEO Alexander Taits.
