Tekever conducted an intensive one-week set of trials of the AR4 Light Ray UAS to the Colombian armed forces, to validate the system’s powerful capabilities for intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance (ISTAR) missions, under the extreme altitude and weather conditions of Colombia.

With very intense military activity against guerrilla forces and narcotraffic groups, the Colombian armed forces are everyday faced with the need to carry out ISTAR missions under extreme weather and geographic conditions. The Colombian landscape is poised with high altitude mountains that contribute to a very instable weather, prune to swift changes and speedy winds. These conditions, coupled with very dense vegetation, pose a true ambitious challenge to the use of unmanned aerial systems by the Colombian armed forces.

The technical trials carried out by the AR4 Light Ray UAS were performed at high altitudes, around 3,000 metres and right in the heart of the mountainous region surrounding Bogotá, demonstrating the system’s ability to perform in the most challenging scenarios and under the most demanding weather conditions.

“The trials were a complete success,” said Ricardo Mendes, Tekever Group COO. “We met and exceeded the goals we had planned for, by demonstrating the usage of the system to perform multiple types of missions in one of the most challenging environments in the world.”