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Dragonfish Standard - Thermal Package
Autel Robotics
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Dragonfish Standard - Thermal Package
Autel RoboticsThe Autel Robotics Dragonfish Standard – Thermal Package is a tilt-rotor VTOL fixed-wing hybrid drone manufactured by Autel Robotics, launched in 2022 and targeted at professional/enterprise applications including public safety, inspection, and emergency management. It supports multiple thermal-capable payloads (T3, T3H, L20T) and offers long endurance (120–179 minutes depending on configuration and payload), high speed (108 km/h), and up to 30 km transmission range. The Dragonfish Lite variant and several payloads (Z2, T3, T3H) were discontinued in 2025 with support ending December 2026. Pricing from verified commerce sources ranges from ~£70,863 to £91,160+ (GBP ex VAT) or $99,000–$124,999 USD depending on payload; one low-confidence source cites $20,000–$30,000 which conflicts significantly with all other pricing evidence. The system performs its surveillance/mapping task autonomously via waypoint missions, AI tracking, and automated nest operations, with no evidence of human teleoperation performing the core task.
Availability
Specification
- takeoff_weight
- 7.8 kg (17.2 lbs)
- max_payload
- 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs)
- flight_time_with_payload
- 120 minutes (standard payload); up to 179 minutes maximum (likely no/light payload)
- max_speed
- 108 km/h (67 mph / 30 m/s)
- transmission_range
- 10 km standalone GCS / 30 km with base station (FCC, unobstructed)
- supported_payloads
- Z2 (dual sensor), T3 (triple sensor: visible zoom + thermal + wide RGB), T3H, L20T (quad-sensor: 4K + 20x optical zoom + wide-angle + thermal + laser rangefinder), M1
- thermal_payload_spec
- 640×512 thermal sensor (confirmed across T3, T3H, L20T payloads)
Price
No public price — contact the supplier for a quote.
Good · Bad · Ugly
Evidence-graded claims from the Autel Robotics deep report
Autel Robotics holds approximately 7% of the US UAV market and grew following US government restrictions on DJI.
Wikipedia (an independent secondary source) cites the ~7% US market share figure as of 2021 and links growth to DJI restrictions [14]; however, the figure is now several years old and no more recent independent market data is available in the dossier.
from Autel Robotics deep report →Autel Robotics was listed on the US Department of Defense Chinese military enterprise list on January 6, 2025.
Both Wikipedia [14] and Autel's own public statement [12] confirm the DoD listing as a factual event; Autel's denial of military ties is self-serving and does not alter the independently documented designation.
from Autel Robotics deep report →The EVO Max 4T and Autel Alpha are actively sold commercial products with confirmed retail pricing, representing Autel's fully commercial enterprise tier.
Autel Alpha is listed at $19,289 on both the official Autel shop and third-party retailer DroneNerds [5][9]; EVO Max 4N is listed at $8,899–$12,599 across Dronefly and DroneNerds [7][9] — independent retail listings confirm active commercial availability, though real-world deployment scale and customer outcomes remain unverified.
from Autel Robotics deep report →
The Autel Alpha achieves personnel recognition at ranges up to 8 km.
The 8 km personnel recognition figure appears only on Autel's official product page and a commerce listing (DroneNerds) [3][9] — both are vendor-aligned sources; no independent field test or third-party evaluation confirms this operational range.
from Autel Robotics deep report →The Autel Alpha is IP55-rated, operates from -4°F to 122°F, and carries a laser rangefinder accurate to ±1m within 400m — positioning it as a ruggedized enterprise platform.
Hardware specs are corroborated by both the official product page and a third-party retailer listing (DroneNerds) [3][9], lending moderate confidence, but no independent environmental or accuracy testing has verified these specifications in the field.
from Autel Robotics deep report →
Autel drones are a viable, production-ready alternative to DJI for professional UAV mapping and photogrammetry workflows.
Multiple independent Reddit communities focused on UAV mapping explicitly report photogrammetry surface quality issues, inconsistent support, and a clear preference for DJI over Autel for reliability in professional workflows [16][20][17] — Autel is described as a fallback, not an equal.
from Autel Robotics deep report →Several Autel product lines (EVO I, EVO III, EVO Nest 2, Apex, EVO Nano, EVO Lite) have been discontinued, raising concerns about long-term parts availability and support continuity.
Autel's own newsroom confirms the end-of-life status of these lines [11], and independent community users separately report difficulty obtaining spare parts and inconsistent support [15][18][19] — together these corroborate the concern, contradicting any implicit vendor claim of robust long-term support.
from Autel Robotics deep report →
About the company
Editorial directory of real robot products from leading global manufacturers. Each entry links to the manufacturer's official page.