The Skywalker airframe was one of the first to be designed specifically for hobbyists interested in radio controlled aerial photo and video applications. It has a 'pusher' configuration with the motor and propellor located behid the wing so that the thrust of the motor 'pushes' the plane through the air rather than 'pulls' it. This configuration works well as the prop is no longer in danger of being in the view of the camera located in the best viewing position at the front, and moving the motor aft helps to balance the added weight of a camera located at the front. As the camera is mounted on a gimbal, a second fixed FPV (First Person View) camera is used for flying so that the attitude of the plane while flying is visible which would otherwise be masked by gimbal compensation.
Sitting directly behind the motor is the video transmitter which can be controlled to transmit video either from the FPV camera or the gimbal video camera. Placing it here provides a good airflow over the transmitter and hence cooling, particularly when operating at higher power for longer distance flights. To provide a good separation of distance from other electronic signals that could interfere, the radio control receiver and antenna are located in the wing with the antenna mounted vertically to align it with the transmitted antenna. The radio control link operates at 868MHz which allows for long range flights.
With a 1.8m wingspan and a motor capable of delivering around 300W, the Skywalker can lift a reasonable payload, and when used with large batteries it can have a long flight time. The interior of the fuselage is also spacious and can house a good amount of additional equipment. This Skywalker is equipped with a GPS flight controller that provides it with gyro-based stabilisation, the ability to follw a pre-defined flight plan and 'return-to-home' that will bring the plane back to its launch location should it lose radio contact.
Different camera 'pods' can be made for the front of the plane, two of which are shown in the picture on right. One of these is a two-axis gimbal that compensates for the pitch and roll movement of the plane to give a smoother video, while the other has a camera mounted on a 180-degree servo that can rotate the camera to either side giving different views from the plane.
