Reconnaissance drones for the Bundesheer: 315 Magni-X from Elbit Systems arriving from August 2025

The Austrian Armed Forces (Bundesheer) will shortly receive new reconnaissance drones: as the news portal Heute reports, they are short-range aerial reconnaissance drones of the Magni-X type from Israeli manufacturer Elbit Systems.

Procurement followed a selection process and training of drone operators by the Heerestruppenschule (the Army’s combat support school). As early as January, around 100 soldiers were ready to take over the new combat-technology drones. The aim is a build-up ranging from the major formations via one to two drone instructors per battalion down to platoon level. Much work thus lies ahead: the 315 drones procured for now are intended as a start, not an end point.

Performance data of the reconnaissance drones

In its standard configuration, the foldable quadcopter weighs 2 kilograms, and 3 kilograms as a long-range version; the take-off weight may not exceed 3.5 kilograms. This places the unmanned aircraft system (UAS) in NATO drone Class I Micro.

At 2 kilograms, the drone stays airborne for up to 30 minutes, and for up to 60 minutes in the 3-kilogram version. Its range is at least 5 kilometres, and up to 10 kilometres is possible with an optimal link. Maximum speed is given as 45 km/h, and maximum altitude is 1,200 metres.

A choice of sensors from Next Vision

The Magni-X can carry various Next Vision sensors as payload. The Dragoneye 2 sensor weighs 115 grams and is equipped with a dual stabilised camera for the electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) range. Its thermal sensor has a resolution of 640 × 480 px. The zoom offers 20x optical and 2x digital, giving up to 40x magnification in total.

At 250 grams, the Night-Hawk 2 is twice as heavy; with otherwise identical performance, it delivers correspondingly better image quality. Heavier still is the Night-Hawk 2UZ at 350 grams, which in return achieves a thermal sensor resolution of 1,280 × 720 px.

Autonomous flight, secure data link

The Magni-X flies fully autonomously to routes, target coordinates and landing sites set by the operator; it detects obstacles and avoids them on its own.

All flight data and real-time video are available to the operator. With autonomous control, the operator can focus fully on target monitoring. For operations in hostile environments, a jamming-resistant flight control computer and a secure data link are provided, combined with the ability to navigate without satellite signals.

With suitable software, the UAS can also automatically detect, identify and track targets.

The manufacturer rates the Magni-X at “TRL 9”. This refers to the highest Technology Readiness Level (TRL), which certifies successful use in real operations.

According to the Heute report, the Bundesheer’s procurement comprises 315 UAS including a training package and spare-parts supply; they are to be delivered in four tranches from August 2025.

Lieutenant Colonel Hartmuth Ziegler, head of the reconnaissance section in the Heerestruppenschule’s doctrine department, reaffirmed the Bundesheer’s aim of exploiting the system’s capabilities to the full.