Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) specialist COPTRZ has entered a strategic partnership with Norwegian manufacturer GRIFF Aviation to exclusively distribute the latter’s fleet of heavy-lift commercial drones across the UK and Ireland.

Capable of carrying payloads weighing up to 150kg, the GRIFF drones have been specifically designed for heavy-lifting applications such as search-and-rescue, cargo delivery and military supply missions.

COPTRZ founder and managing director Steve Coulson said: “Until now, the use of drones in a commercial sense has been limited by the lack of lifting capacity available from models currently on the market.

“This enterprise level partnership makes complete sense for both businesses."

“The GRIFF is a tremendous drone and I have seen first-hand what is it capable of achieving. No other drone available at this time is comparable in terms of quality, performance or mission flexibility.

“This enterprise level partnership makes complete sense for both businesses and I looking forward to working alongside GRIFF Aviation in offering bespoke drone strategies to our customers.”

In June, COPTRZ announced the signing of a strategic partnership to become the sole distributor of FLIR’s Vue Pro/R thermal imaging cameras for operations involving small unmanned aerial systems (SUASs) in the UK.

Established last year, the company currently offers specialist services to the commercial UAV market.

Image: COPTRZ and GRIFF Aviation representatives. Photo: courtesy of COPTRZ.