Austrian drones set for surveillance mission in Ukraine

In the middle of the Austrian countryside, a few sleek, hi-tech drones sit in a bright production hall, ready for missions over Ukraine, the Mediterranean or the Middle East.

Schiebel, a small company originally specialised in landmine detection, has been manufacturing the Camcopter - a 3.5-metre long mini-helicopter equipped with cameras, radars and other sensors - for almost 10 years.

But it has gained prominence with a new mission in Ukraine, where the Camcopter will assist observers from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe to monitor a ceasefire with pro-Russian rebels.

Even before this, there were surveillance missions at the Winter Olympics in Sochi and the G20 summit in Seoul.

"Schiebel is actually the leading unmanned VTOL [Vertical Take Off and Landing] supplier at present," according to Oliver Shorvon of London-based IHS Jane's Aerospace and Defence Consulting.

Costing a few million euros, with over eight hours' endurance and weighing a mere 200kg, the Camcopter managed to impose itself over a dozen other drones, even those produced by top defence companies such as Sweden's SaaB and Airbus.