Denel Dynamics Skua

The Denel Dynamics Skua is a South African turbojet-powered target drone used to simulate fast attack aircraft in surface-to-air and air-to-air training and weapons tests. It has a composite airframe with a wingspan of 3.57 m and a length of 6 m, carries tow targets and signature enhancement equipment up to 160 kg under the wings plus 70 kg in an internal bay, and reaches Mach 0.86 at 10,000 m with 85 minutes of endurance. It is launched from a truck-mounted zero-length launcher and recovered by parachute, landing inverted on airbags, which makes water recoveries possible. A system holds four to eight drones with a mobile ground control station. The Skua has been used in development of the A-Darter missile and to test the Umkhonto missile and the Brazilian MAA-1 Piranha.