Don’t let the name confuse you: Two companies have released unrelated ISR products, each called Redkite, at about the same time.
RedKite from Airbus Defense and Space is an infrared camera. The company describes it as a short wave infrared (SWIR) device that can detect targets up to 8 kilometers away.
“RedKite enables the user to recognize details, such a ship’s number, which would not be visible in a thermal image,” said an Airbus news release. “The user is also able to look through windows, which is impossible with a thermal image device on account of the absorption in the glass.”
Logos Technologies has also released a Redkite. The Logos Redkite a lightweight, wide-area motion imagery (WAMI) sensor.
Housed in a pod that weighs less than 35 pounds, this Redkite can cover a 4-kilometer area light enough to be mounted on helicopters, small planes and UAVs. “Redkite will be an invaluable tool for law enforcement, firefighters, search and rescue teams and other users,” said Logos president John Marion in a company statement. “No longer will they have to depend solely on traditional narrow-field video cameras.”
In the wild, a red kite (spelled as two words) is an Australian bird of prey, which looks like this:
A red kite in the wild.
Photo Credit: Wikipedia
