OTO Melara Horus: The UAV that decided to be a tank round

Il_Signor_Regio · May 26, 2024, 8:29pm

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Description: The Horus is an Italian reconnaissance UAV developed by the Italian company Leonardo to be used by various Italians armoured veichle such as Ariete, Centauro, Dardo and Freccia. It’s development started back in 2010 when Leonardo started to develop a new reconnaissance UAV in order to fulfill the requirements of an European initiative called “Reseachers Night.” The Horus was shown for the first time at Eurosatory 2012 mounted on a Freccia. This Freccia in the specific was a unique prototype version, equipped with four Horus launchers on the side of the turret (2x side, the one in the first picture). It is made of carbon fiber and has two pairs of folding wings. The drone has a maximum speed of 100 km, and it’s equipped with a small electric engine powered by a lithium battery. After the launch, the drone was controlled by the commander of the tank, and it was intended to spot enemies near the launcher vehicle. It could have been a good choice to reduce the time for a reaction, as it would have delivered information faster rather than calling an air force UAV for reconnaissance purposes. It was tested many times and presented on various shows, but in the end, it was never ordered by the Italian Army and was eventually abandoned. It was the first UAV of this class (if not the only ever made), and in the future, the experience gained in the development of this drone could be used to develop loitering munitions that could be launched from the main cannon of a tank or the missile launcher of an IFV and controlled by the commander to strike an enemy position or vehicle.

Why it should be in the game: It could be a very funny addition as it could be launched from a tank’s main gun (and, let’s be honest, who wouldn’t try to shoot it at a tank?). It will be smaller than the “common” scout UAV and will probably be even more maneuverable as it has canards. The number of drones used by a single tank will also be more than one, as the drone foldered is the same size as a normal shell, so you could even load a full ammo rack of drones. Lastly, it can be given to the Ariete MBT as a scout drone.

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