Phoenix Ghost: secret of mysterious drones for Ukraine is revealed for first time in US
18 October, 2024 The Disruptor strike drone developed under the Phoenix Ghost program, October 2024. Photo credits: Jamie Hunter The Phoenix Ghost is not a single drone, but a family of attack drones of various ranges, supplied by the United States from 2022.
The War Zone publication reported on this. This week, the American company AEVEX Aerospace confirmed that under the name Phoenix Ghost there was a whole family of more than five drones of different types that had been developed by their company. The delivery of Phoenix Ghost to Ukraine was first announced back in 2022, but until now, any photos or details about it have been kept strictly confidential.
"It's been a long time coming. We've been able to receive a specific permission to talk about it," Elizabeth Trammell, senior director of business development at AEVEX, told TWZ Tuesday.
Phoenix Ghost
Among the declassified developments related to the project that have already been spotted on the battlefield are Dominator and Disruptor drones. The latter, in particular, was publicly presented only this week.
They are classified according to the American system as Group 3 drones. The U.S. military defines the Group 3 drones as weighing between 25 to 600 kilograms, being able to fly at altitudes between 1,000 to 5,500 meters, and having top speeds of between 185 to 460 km/h. The Disruptor, which has a tubular carbon fiber main body, a pair of straight main wings, and a v-tail configuration, is 3 meters long and has a wingspan of 4.8 m.
It has a maximum takeoff weight of 84 kg when launched pneumatically, but this can be increased to 93 kg by using a rocket-assisted launch method. AEVEX also states that the Disruptor can be vehicle-launched, but has not provided any further details.
The Disruptor strike drone developed under the Phoenix Ghost program, October 2024. Photo credits: Jamie Hunter
Powered by a small internal combustion engine driving a two-bladed pusher propeller, the Disruptor can stay aloft for 4.5 hours and fly out to a maximum range of at least 600 kilometers with a 22.5 kg payload. The company also offers a version using electronic fuel injection (EFI), increasing its endurance to 11.6 hours and extending its range out to 1,300 kilometers.
A disruptor strike drone engine and similar drone wreckage in Ukraine
AEVEX says the Group 3 Dominator is dimensionally identical to the Disruptor in terms of overall length and wingspan, but it has a completely different twin-boom configuration with an inverted v-shaped tailplane.
The Dominator has maximum takeoff weights of 93-100 kg when launched pneumatically or in a rocket-assisted mode, respectively. With a similar, if not identical propulsion system to the Disruptor, the Dominator has maximum endurances of 4.6 and 11.7 hours and ranges of 500 and 1200 kilometers with and without EFI. According to the company's website, "All AEVEX strike drones use visual navigation that autonomously identifies the ground features, providing accurate positioning and path determination without the use of GPS."
The control system of these drones is capable of automatically detecting and identifying targets, as well as "navigating, making decisions, and performing tasks without direct intervention by the operator," according to the developers.
- The Dominator strike drone developed under the Phoenix Ghost program. Photo credits: AEVEX
- A Dominator strike drone in Ukraine, December 2023. Photo credits: t.me/ukr_informant
The Phoenix Ghost family also includes smaller drones, notably the Dagger.
They belong to the younger Group 2 category, which is characterized by a weight of 9.5 to 25 kg, a flight height of up to 1000 meters and a maximum speed of up to 460 km/h. The AEVEX Aerospace unveiled the Dagger for the first time this week, but it was spotted in Ukraine back in 2022, where it was probably the first of the above systems to appear. The Dagger is 1.8 meters long and has a wingspan of 2.6 m, has a maximum takeoff weight of 16 kg (including 3.6 kg payload), and can fly for up to 80 minutes and out to a range of 190 km.
A Dagger strike drone.
Photo credits: t.me/ukr_informant
The U.S. military said it had allocated approximately £576 million for the purchase of the drones in this family from AEVEX for the Ukrainian Armed Forces in August. To date, the U.S. military has pledged at least 1,800 Phoenix Ghosts to Ukraine. It's worth noting that despite the enormous procurement budget, the drones are characterized by the sincere use of the Chinese components and an approach to maximize the cost of construction.
Development of the drone family
Trammell, the company's chief development officer, also said that the Phoenix Ghost family included many other projects, some of which remained under wraps.
One of the publicly known systems that have not yet been spotted in Ukraine is the Atlas kamikaze drone, which falls under the description of the Group 2 category. The drone has a fuselage 88 cm long and a wingspan of 1.5 meters. Its weight is 9.5 kg, including the warhead weighing 3.6 kg, which is probably unified with the Dagger.
Its claimed flight time is one to two hours, and its claimed maximum range is 120 kilometers.
The Atlas drone.
AEVEX
The company said that it was seriously studying the experience of combat operations in Ukraine and intended to improve the resistance of its drones to the enemy electronic warfare.
The integration of the Veth Research Associates' control and navigation system technologies may soon become a suitable solution.