Azerbaijani Drones Showcased at World Defense Show — What Are They Capable Of?

Azerbaijani companies Azshield Defense and RD Smart presented a line of strike and specialized unmanned aerial vehicles, including bomber drones, interceptors, and FPV drones with various combat units and control systems.

This was reported by a Militarnyi correspondent from the World Defense Show exhibition in Riyadh.

One of the largest representatives of the RD Smart family is the QARTAL bomber drone, as well as its reconnaissance version, the QARTAL-M.

In its basic strike configuration, the QARTAL is capable of carrying two munitions with a total weight of up to 3 kg and has a combat radius of up to 15 km. Its maximum flight speed is 70 km/h, and its operating altitude is up to 800 meters.

The drone’s take-off weight is 13 kg, and its maximum payload is up to 8 kg. Flight duration is 30 to 40 minutes, depending on the mode of operation. QARTAL can operate in a wide temperature range, from –40 to +60 °C. The optoelectronic station is equipped with daytime and thermal imaging channels with 10x magnification.

The reconnaissance version of QARTAL-M has an increased range of up to 30 km and an airborne time of up to 80 minutes. The drone weighs 12 kg. The improved camera provides 40x magnification, the maximum speed has increased to 100 km/h, and the operating altitude is up to 2 km.

Among the light strike drones, RD Smart presented QUZGHUN with a warhead based on 1 kg of C4 explosives. The drone is designed to hit area targets — the warhead is located in the lower part of the body.

The flight range is up to 15 km, and the autonomy is up to 34 minutes. Its maximum speed is 90 km/h. The drone is equipped with a camera with day and thermal imaging modes.

A version of the QUZGHUN-Z designed for direct strikes was also presented, which can be equipped with various types of warheads.

In addition, RD Smart showcased a line of strike FPV drones, including the QIRGHI-S. It has a flight range of up to 10 km, a warhead with C4 weighing over 1.4 kg, and a maximum speed of 90 km/h.

Azshield Defence, in turn, presented a line of FPV drones and interceptor drones. Among them is the Batur family, built on 7-, 10-, and 15-inch frames. The drones can use both radio control and fiber optic communication systems, and the weight of the warheads varies from 1.3 to 5 kg. The range of application is from 10 to 15 km.

A series of high-speed high-altitude BARS FPV interceptors on 5- and 7-inch frames was also presented.

They are capable of operating at altitudes of 2 to 3 km and carrying a combat unit weighing 300 to 400 grams. The maximum speed of such drones is about 300 km/h.

Back in 2024, the Azerbaijani military began experiments with various types of unmanned aerial vehicles, including both bomber drones and FPV drones.

At that time, they used Chinese commercial Splash Drone 4 platforms from Swellpro Technology, which were adapted to drop 82 mm mines.

Now, Azerbaijan is already demonstrating factory-made drones specially designed and optimized for regular use in the military, which indicates a transition from experimental solutions to serial military platforms.