MONTEVIDEO, Uruguay - The Argentinean National Gendarmerie has issued a tender (GNS 33/2014) for the purchase of up to eight unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
The tender seeks UAVs with a top speed of at least 72 kilometers per hour, a wing span of no more than one meter, an operational range of at least two kilometers, and a flight autonomy of at least 50 minutes. The UAVs should also be able to tolerate winds of at least 32 km/hour.
The vehicles should also be able to be equipped with two cameras for live image transmission in HD with H264 encryption. One of the two will be a day/night camera with a zoom of at least 10x and a resolution of 540 TVL or higher. The other camera with a night/thermal vision type with a resolution of 336 TVL/ 640 TVL. Both cameras must have movement in all three axes with stabilized rotation.
The entire unit should be operated by one man and will include a workstation consisting of a robust tablet and a radio frequency encrypted joystick. The UAV should be programmable for manual flight, semi-autonomous, and guided for GPS waypoints. It should also have the ability to takeoff and auto-land as well as track targets by video camera.
The opening date for bids is September 23, 2014.