Raybird-3

The Raybird-3 is a long-endurance fixed-wing reconnaissance UAV developed by the Ukrainian company Skyeton, which pivoted from light sport aircraft manufacturing to unmanned systems after Russia's 2014 seizure of Crimea. The standard variant has been in Ukrainian Armed Forces service since 2018, used for long-range surveillance and artillery-spotting missions, with a wingspan of about 4.7 meters and a maximum takeoff weight around 23 kg carrying up to roughly 10 kg of payload. In 2026, Skyeton fielded a hydrogen fuel-cell hybrid variant of the Raybird, which the company and defense press described as the first hydrogen-powered drone deployed into an active combat zone. The hybrid system pairs an electric motor with a hydrogen fuel cell, reportedly giving the aircraft a near-negligible heat signature and quieter operation than the standard four-stroke combustion engine version, at the cost of a lower operating ceiling of about 5,500 meters and a narrower operating temperature range of -35 to +55 degrees Celsius. Reported cruise speed is about 110 km/h, with the hybrid variant currently offering roughly 12 hours of endurance, which Skyeton has stated it is working to extend toward 20 hours. Skyeton has not published a full technical datasheet with confirmed current-production performance figures for the hybrid variant, and this entry treats the standard variant's longer-standing published range and endurance figures as separate from the newer hybrid's still-evolving numbers.