Israel Aerospace, AEVEX Unveil OmniRaider VTOL Drone for U.S. Army

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), its subsidiary BlueBird Aero Systems, and U.S.-based AEVEX Aerospace have unveiled the OmniRaider Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) for the U.S. Army at AUSA 2025.

The OmniRaider, the U.S. version of the ThunderB-Next Generation (NG) platform, is part of the Department of Defense’s Group 3 VTOL class. It will be fully produced and fielded in the United States by AEVEX at its Tampa facility.

The aircraft has a maximum take-off weight of 110 pounds and can carry more than 20 pounds of payloads in multi-mission configurations. Its modular architecture supports multiple payloads — including electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors, signal intelligence (SIGINT) systems, and mapping tools — enabling simultaneous reconnaissance, surveillance, and targeting operations.

With endurance of 12–14 hours and a range of 100 miles, the OmniRaider provides brigade-level Reconnaissance, Surveillance, and Target Acquisition (RSTA) support. It is capable of operating in GPS-denied and electromagnetically congested environments.

Based on the field-proven ThunderB UAS, already integrated with 11 different payloads for various missions, the OmniRaider is designed to deliver persistent, flexible RSTA capabilities for diverse operational requirements.