Cardinal is a family of small unmanned aerial vehicles made by the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST).
Cardinal is a family of small unmanned aerial vehicles made by the National Chung-Shan Institute of Science and Technology (NCSIST).
The Cardinal I was the initial prototype of the Cardinal. [1]
The Cardinal II began development in 2009 and is based on the Cardinal I but has a better payload design, digital data link, and automatic tracking antenna system. It was exhibited at the 2015 Paris Air Show. In service with Republic of China Marine Corps [2] and Republic of China Army. [3] Other than military missions the Cardinal II can be used for civil remote sensing and disaster relief missions. [4]
The Taiwanese Navy procured 54 aircraft in 2016. [5]
The components of a Cardinal II system are the aircraft, an antenna, and a ground control box. The Cardinal II is hand launched and recovered by parachute. The aircraft is equipped with an autopilot and can transmit data and imagery in real time. [4] The remote control flight range is 8km. [6] In service a Taiwanese Cardinal II unit has six primary aircraft and three backups. [5]
Cardinal III features vertical takeoff and landing capabilities. It is reportedly optimized for coastal surveillance. [7] It is intended for operation by the Marine Corps. [8] It was displayed at the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition in 2023. [9]
In 2019 NCSIST exhibited the Fire Cardinal for the first time at the Taipei Aerospace & Defense Technology Exhibition. It was referred to by NCSIST as an "air-to-ground assault" UAV, what is more commonly known as a loitering munition. [10] The Fire Cardinal is a twin-propeller drone about four feet long with a six-foot wingspan. It weighs around 15 pounds and includes an electro-optical and infrared sensor as well as advanced target discrimination systems. [11]
General characteristics
Performance
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