General Atomics presents a drone with machine guns that can hit a target in seconds (photo)
General Atomics has demonstrated a Mojave drone equipped with two Dillon Aero DAP-6 Miniguns with a rate of fire of 3000 rounds per minute from each weapon. During the tests, this firepower allowed the drone to hit a car in a matter of seconds.
The Mojave drone with the DAP-6 minigun has already been tested and during the first firing demonstration hit several static targets, including a Chevy pickup truck that blew the drone to pieces.
The Minigun machine gun in the DAP-6 capsule has a rate of fire of 3000 rounds per minute, and since Mojave has two guns, the total rate of fire of the drone is 6000 rounds per minute.
Because the DAP-6 weighs up to 159 kg when fully loaded, the development team needed to be creative. According to Mark Brinkley, Senior Director of Marketing at General Atomics, they had to update hardware and software, as well as conduct a number of ground test firings to accurately aim the machine guns, which are fired from a fixed position on the wings.
“Once the team of engineers understood the individual impact points of the projectiles fired from each machine gun, we were able to conduct a demonstration flight and hit all the targets from the air,” Brinkley explained.
The company representative added that the drone used the weapon without any incidents. There were no problems with vibration or recoil. And the test results showed that the accuracy and efficiency will increase as the developers develop the platform.
According to Brinkley, in the future, the drone will be equipped with rotating miniguns that will be mounted on special mounts. And in the long term, the developers do not rule out the integration of artillery pieces on a drone.
