Platform developer and producer Reiner Stemme Utility Air-Systems has debuted the new Q01 German-Qatari intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft for the first time outside of the Middle East, which is being funded bythe Gulf state. That reported by www.flightglobal.com.

The high-wing aircraft, powered by a Technify Motors CD-300 diesel and with a constant-speed MT-Propeller unit, will have a two-pilot crew and will be capable of carrying a variety of sensors, according to Edmund Maestele, who handles marketing and sales for Reiner Stemme.

While unable to go into details of the aircraft’s performance, it would be superior in endurance to competing designs, he says. Future versions may have a crew rest area behind the cockpit. The aircraft’s empty weight is around 1,700kg, with an maximum take-off weight of 2,750kg. It will be capable of operating from grass airstrips. “The aircraft first flew in November last year, after 18 months of development,” says Maestele. “That’s very, very fast starting from a blank sheet of paper.”

A variety of sensors can be integrated into the design. The prototype has an under-fuselage sensor ball representative of an L-3 Wescam MX-20 electro-optical/infrared and a large belly fairing capable of containing a ground surveillance radar.