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A single Li-S Energy lithium-sulfur battery pack powered the Pegasus drone for almost two hours and more than 75 km during a Queensland test flight, the company said. The result completes the flight-test work for a government-backed project, but the claimed advantage over a lithium-polymer pack is a company comparison with stated assumptions, not an independently verified finding.
Li-S Energy says a single 382 Wh lithium-sulfur battery pack powered the Pegasus long-endurance drone for almost two hours over Queensland, covering more than 75 km in a test flight. The flight met the aircraft’s expected performance and ended with battery capacity remaining, according to the Australian battery developer.
The test used 1.1 kg of lithium-sulfur cells supplied by Li-S Energy, which also provided the battery management system. Pegasus is a twin-motor aircraft with a five-meter wingspan, designed and built by three Australian companies. V-TOL Aerospace developed the airframe and power systems, while Halocell Energy made a perovskite solar array fitted along the wings.
Li-S Energy’s battery management system works with V-TOL’s power management system to control power to the drone’s motors and onboard control systems, while also managing energy supplied by the solar array. The company said it filed two patent applications during the project, covering the battery management system and battery-pack design.
Li-S Energy compared the cells flown with a Tattu 6S lithium-polymer drone pack rated at 16,000 mAh. The company lists that pack at 355 Wh and about 1.85 kg, or roughly 192 Wh/kg. On an equal-cell-weight basis, Li-S Energy says its cells delivered 80% more range and flight time. That estimate excludes pack housings and battery management systems and assumes flight time scales linearly with cell energy; it is not the same as a measured, like-for-like aircraft test.
A Longer-Range Drone Test
The flight provides a real-world test of a lithium-sulfur battery system in an aircraft, rather than a result limited to cell measurements. For operators considering long-endurance mapping, surveillance, agriculture, utilities or environmental monitoring, additional flight time could reduce the need for landings and make longer missions possible. The test establishes that this particular Pegasus configuration completed a near two-hour flight; it does not by itself establish a commercial operating range or performance across different conditions.
The project also tested the coordination of battery power and wing-mounted solar input. That integrated system may matter to the aircraft’s future endurance, but the reported flight details do not state how much energy the solar array contributed or isolate its effect on flight time. Commercial relevance will depend on further performance analysis, system reliability, production readiness and the costs of the aircraft and battery.
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How the Pegasus Project Fits
The Pegasus project brought together V-TOL Aerospace, Li-S Energy and Halocell Energy to develop an Australian long-endurance drone combining a purpose-built airframe, lithium-sulfur battery packs and perovskite solar technology. The aircraft was designed to carry two Li-S Energy packs, although the reported endurance flight used a single pack.
The work received a grant of just over A$1.35 million from the Australian government through the Emerging Aviation Technology Partnership program, with the three partners matching the funding. The reported flight completes the project’s development and flight-test work. Li-S Energy says fitting both battery packs and improved solar arrays could eventually support missions of five to eight hours and cover 250 km. Those figures are expectations for a future configuration, not results from the single-pack test.
Performance Questions Remain
The report does not provide a precise flight duration, detailed weather or operating conditions, or a breakdown of how much energy came from the battery compared with the solar array. It also does not include independent test results or a direct Pegasus flight using the lithium-polymer pack cited in Li-S Energy’s comparison. The company’s 80% range and flight-time claim rests on an equal-cell-weight calculation with stated exclusions and an assumption of linear scaling.
It remains unclear whether the proposed five- to eight-hour missions and 250 km coverage can be achieved in operational conditions, what payload those missions would carry, or when the platform might be available for sale. The project partners have not, in the supplied report, announced commercial orders, a sales schedule or pricing.
Partners to Review Flight Data
The partners plan to analyze the flight data to characterize the Pegasus platform’s performance and assess its commercial potential. The reported project has completed its development and flight-test work, but the data review may clarify the battery’s contribution, the solar array’s role and how the aircraft performed against its design targets.
Li-S Energy’s proposed next step is a configuration with two battery packs and improved solar arrays. The company’s five- to eight-hour and 250 km estimates remain future targets. Further demonstrations and commercial plans have not been detailed in the report.
Key Questions
How long did the Pegasus drone fly?
Li-S Energy said it flew for almost two hours during the Queensland test. The report does not give an exact duration.
How far did the test flight cover?
The drone covered more than 75 km, according to Li-S Energy.
Was the 80% battery advantage independently verified?
No independent verification is described. The 80% figure is Li-S Energy’s comparison, based on equal cell weight, excluding pack housings and battery management systems and assuming flight time scales linearly with cell energy.
What flight time is planned for a future Pegasus configuration?
Li-S Energy says the aircraft could eventually fly for five to eight hours and cover 250 km with two battery packs and improved solar arrays. Those are projected capabilities, not results of the reported test.
What happens after the test flight?
The project partners plan to analyze the flight data and assess the platform’s commercial potential. No sales date or commercial order was reported.
Source: rss
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