Beta 1-A

Beta-1A is a fixed-wing research UAV developed by Aerovantech, a small company based in Monterrey, Mexico.

Overview

Aerovantech describes itself as a Mexican company based in Monterrey offering two aircraft: the smaller Alfa3, with about an hour of endurance, and the larger Beta-1A. The company's own materials place the Beta-1A's development in the orbit of the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (Tecnológico de Monterrey), crediting three researchers — Arturo Galván, Alejandro Escarpita and José Aldo Díaz Prado — and showing the aircraft presented at a university research congress. Aerovantech's site describes the Beta-1A as an open-source platform offered for academic research rather than a fielded production system, and no operator or customer has been publicly confirmed.

Design and capabilities

Aerovantech's specification page lists the Beta-1A at 3 m long with a 5.2 m wingspan, a 100 kg maximum take-off weight and a 15 kg payload capacity. Separately, the company's own site describes the Beta-1A as offering about 60 hours of endurance — an unusually long figure for an aircraft this size, which the company does not explain in further technical detail. Aerovantech markets the aircraft for detection and monitoring of forest fires in remote, high-risk or densely populated areas, saying it can be fitted with day, night and thermal cameras, lasers and sensor networks; the company's site also lists coastal monitoring and natural-disaster monitoring among the aircraft's intended applications, though without further description of those roles.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Beta-1A's wingspan and weight?

Aerovantech's specification page lists a 5.2 m wingspan, a 3 m length, a 100 kg maximum take-off weight and a 15 kg payload.

How long can the Beta-1A fly?

Aerovantech's own site states an endurance of about 60 hours, though it does not publish further technical detail supporting that figure.

What is the Beta-1A used for?

Aerovantech markets it for forest-fire detection and monitoring, coastal monitoring and natural-disaster monitoring, alongside academic research use.

Who makes the Beta-1A?

Aerovantech, a small company based in Monterrey, Mexico, with ties to researchers at the Tecnológico de Monterrey.

Is the Beta-1A in service anywhere?

No operator or production status has been publicly confirmed; Aerovantech's own materials present it as an academic research platform.