Orbital secures new drone engine customer

Drone engine manufacturer Orbital Corporation has secured a new customer for its engine development and manufacturing services.

The Perth company said it had signed a contract worth $1.1 million for the supply of heavy fuel engine systems, spare parts and in service technical support with a new customer, which Orbital described as a ‘defence agency organisation’.

The company, Finance International (FI) is also based in Perth and is a project financing and project management firm that focuses on early stage ventures, working primarily within the Asia-Pacific region.

Orbital has been seeking new customers as it moves to reduce its dependence on its biggest and dominant customer, Boeing’s Insitu UAV division.

Orbital CEO and Managing Director Todd Adler said: “Over the past 10 years Orbital has built an enviable position as a world leader in the design and manufacture of engine systems for tactical UAVs.

“This latest order for our heavy fuel UAV engines demonstrates the growing reputation of our established product range and continues to expand our global customer footprint.”

Orbital will provide a number of systems for integration into the customer’s tactical UAV.

The engines supplied will include Orbital’s FlexDI direct fuel injection system and FlexECU engine control unit.

These incorporate patented technology for engines operating on military kerosene-based fuels.

Adler said: “We continue to witness the increasing strategic significance and growing demand for tactical UAV capability around the globe, and particularly in the Asia Pacific region.

“Within APAC several nations are exploring or developing their own sovereign capability in the tactical UAV domain.

“The military requirement for equipment to run JP-5 or JP-6 fuels ensures that Orbital UAV’s unique patented technology continues to offer a significant advantage in the supply of superior propulsion solutions for this type of application.”

Picture: Orbital UAV