Inspired Flight Drone IF1200
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Shipped direct from the manufacturer
A 43 minute maximum flight time and a 19 lb payload rating, on a mount Inspired Flight rates at 0 to 3 kg. It publishes a component-level NDAA section 848 compliance sheet for this aircraft.
01
Blue UAS and NDAA compliant are two separate claims, and the compliance sheet flags the Blue Herelink
Inspired Flight states the IF1200 is certified Blue UAS and NDAA compliant, and draws the line between the two itself. All its aircraft are NDAA compliant. A Blue UAS Authority to Operate is granted to specific systems by the Defense Innovation Unit. Inspired Flight publishes an IF1200A NDAA section 848 compliance sheet, updated January 2023, naming every component and its country of manufacture. It publishes that sheet without the FPV camera, so the camera sits outside what it covers. The sheet also carries this footnote. While NDAA compliant, Defense Innovation Unit has determined that the Blue Herelink product is not approved for Department of Defense UAS operations. Inspired Flight adds that systems granted a Blue UAS Authority to Operate are not allowed Remote ID transmission capability by the Department of Defense.
02
Inspired Flight says it designs, assembles and supports the aircraft in the United States, and its own sheet names the foreign parts
Its pilot operating handbook opens by calling the IF1200A an American-made, NDAA-compliant heavy-lift hexacopter. Inspired Flight was founded in 2017 in San Luis Obispo, California. Section 848 restricts covered foreign entities, not all foreign content, and the sheet lists the parts built outside the United States. The Here3 GNSS receiver and the microSD card come from Taiwan, and the ArduPilot software and RFD900X-US radio from Australia. The Jeti DS-12 console comes from the Czech Republic. The power distribution board is Inspired Flight's own and is made in the United States. If your rule is country-of-origin rather than covered-entity, read that sheet first.
03
43 minutes is Inspired Flight's maximum, with no payload weight attached to it
Inspired Flight states separately that real-world flight times of over 30 minutes are achievable with an 8 lb payload. No payload weight is attached to the 43 minute figure itself. That holds on Inspired Flight's product page, its specifications page, its FAQ page, its pilot operating handbook and its 2022 information sheet. Read 43 minutes as the ceiling and the 30 minute figure as the one carrying a load. Service ceiling is conditioned the same way, at 3.9 km (12,800 ft) with a 4 kg payload and 2.2 km (7,200 ft) with an 8.7 kg payload.
04
The damping plate the aircraft ships with is rated 0 to 3 kg, well under the payload figures Inspired Flight prints
Inspired Flight's specifications page gives maximum payload capacity as 8.6 kg (19 lbs). Its product page and its own store listing both state 19.1 lbs, and its 2022 information sheet states 8.7 kg. Those are all Inspired Flight's figures and they do not agree. The mount matters more than the number. Bare payload rails with no damping plate take 0 to 8.7 kg. The Midweight Damping Plate takes 0 to 3.0 kg, and the Heavyweight Damping Plate 0 to 5.0 kg. Inspired Flight states the aircraft comes pre-configured with the Midweight Pro Damping Plate, rated 0 to 3 kg. So it does not reach its headline payload on the mount it ships with.
05
The ground control station is chosen when the aircraft is configured, not added afterwards
The GS-ONE is a 7-inch Android touchscreen running Inspired Ground Control, with up to 5 hours per charge. Inspired Flight's IF1200 page puts its display at 2,000 nits and daylight-viewable. The Herelink is a 5.46-inch all-in-one at 1,000 nits, with up to 4 hours per charge and a stated maximum signal range of 5.5 km. The Defense Innovation Unit note above applies to the Blue Herelink. The compliance sheet's component table lists the DS-12, the RFD900X-US and the Blue Herelink, and does not list the GS-ONE. Inspired Flight states the GS-ONE's compliance on that controller's own product page instead. Its handbook, revision 1.02, predates the GS-ONE and still describes three models differing only by remote control.
06
Inspired Flight warrants a new aircraft for twelve months on its own terms, and batteries sit outside them
These are Inspired Flight's terms, not ours. It warrants new Inspired Flight branded aircraft and parts for twelve months from delivery, against defects in materials and workmanship. That holds only where the aircraft is operated and maintained to Inspired Flight's published materials and approved firmware. Inspired Flight states the coverage applies only to buyers who purchase directly from Inspired Flight or from an Inspired Flight authorized reseller. It is non-transferable and applies to the original buyer only. Call us before you order and we will confirm how that applies to your purchase. Inspired Flight excludes batteries. It also excludes any crash, hard landing, collision, flyaway, fire or water exposure, whatever the cause. Third-party payloads are covered only by their own manufacturer's warranty.
07 FOR UNIVERSITIES, COLLEGES AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES
Who should not buy this, and Inspired Flight's own cautions before the first flight
If your approval rule is a Department of Defense list rather than NDAA section 848, settle the controller question first. If your sensor weighs more than 3 kg, the plate the aircraft ships with will not carry it. The batteries are not hot-swappable, because the voltage difference between them during a swap damages them. Inspired Flight's payload pin table says to disconnect payloads before powering on. If GNSS is jammed or lost, the aircraft drops into Altitude Hold and the pilot lands it manually. Motor and bearing replacement means returning the aircraft to Inspired Flight. Four things it has not settled itself. It publishes three maintenance schedules that do not match, and two continuous discharge figures for the same battery. It names the charger three ways and the propellers two. It publishes no package contents list on its product page, specifications page, FAQ page, handbook or own store listing. Shipped direct from the manufacturer. Call +1 888 850 6533 and a specialist will confirm the controller, the payload interface version, the mount your payload needs and what ships with the aircraft.
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REFERENCE
Specifications
Compliance, and where it is made
| Blue UAS and NDAA, in Inspired Flight's own words | Inspired Flight states that the IF1200 is certified Blue UAS and NDAA compliant, and that it is trusted by both government and commercial agencies. Inspired Flight also states the aircraft was developed to meet the standards of the United States Air Force.Inspired Flight's pilot operating handbook opens by describing the aircraft as an American-made, NDAA-compliant heavy-lift hexacopter running the open source ArduPilot flight control system on an NDAA compliant CubePilot Blue Cube H7. |
| NDAA compliance and Blue UAS are not the same claim | Inspired Flight draws the line itself: all Inspired Flight aircraft are NDAA compliant, while a Blue UAS Authority to Operate is granted to specific systems by the Defense Innovation Unit. |
| What the compliance sheet actually covers | Inspired Flight publishes an IF1200A NDAA section 848 compliance specification sheet, updated January 2023, listing every component with its manufacturer, that manufacturer's place of domicile, the country of manufacture, whether it is included with the base aircraft and whether it is required for operation. Inspired Flight publishes the document as its IF1200A NDAA compliance specification sheet without the FPV camera, so the FPV camera sits outside what the sheet covers.Section 848 restricts covered foreign entities, not all foreign content. The sheet itself lists parts built outside the United States: the Here3 GNSS receiver is made in Taiwan, the ArduPilot software and the RFD900X-US telemetry radio come from Australia, the Jeti DS-12 console from the Czech Republic, and the microSD card from Taiwan. The power distribution board is Inspired Flight's own and is made in the United States. |
| Defense Innovation Unit note on the Blue Herelink controller | The compliance sheet carries this footnote from Inspired Flight: while NDAA compliant, Defense Innovation Unit has determined that the Blue Herelink product is not approved for Department of Defense UAS operations.The same sheet notes the aircraft must have radio communication to operate, either the DS-12 and RFD900X-US together with a user-provided ground station, or the Blue Herelink. |
| Remote ID | Inspired Flight states that each of its drones will be pre-approved by the FAA with a Declaration of Compliance for Remote ID, and that the ten digit Remote ID serial number sits next to the QR code sticker on top of the aircraft.Inspired Flight also states that systems specifically granted a Blue UAS Authority to Operate by the Defense Innovation Unit are not allowed by the Department of Defense to have Remote ID transmission capability. Inspired Flight's Remote ID page is written around FAA deadlines in 2023 and 2024, so confirm the Remote ID position for the exact configuration you are buying. |
| FAA registration | Inspired Flight states that United States law requires every unmanned aircraft to be registered with the FAA before flight, and recommends printing the registration number and fixing it to the top carbon plate where the battery mounts. |
| Where Inspired Flight builds and supports it | Inspired Flight states that it designs, assembles, and supports NDAA-compliant drone platforms in the United States. The company was founded in 2017 in San Luis Obispo, California, and the footer on every page of its site reads: Inspired Flight Technologies is engineered, assembled, and supported in the United States. |
Flight performance
| Maximum flight time | 43 minutes, Inspired Flight's own maximum for the aircraft.Inspired Flight states real-world flight times of over 30 minutes are achievable with an 8 lb payload, and attributes the endurance to the aircraft's 16,000 mAh intelligent batteries. Neither the product page, the specifications page, the FAQ page, the pilot operating handbook nor the 2022 IF1200A spec sheet attaches a payload weight to the 43 minute figure itself. |
| Maximum air speed | 25 m/s (56 mph) |
| Maximum wind resistance | 12 m/s sustained with 15 m/s gusts, which Inspired Flight gives as 23 knots with 29 knot gusts. |
| Ascent and descent speed | Ascent 5 m/s (16 ft/s). Descent 3 m/s (10 ft/s).Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet states a slower descent, 2.5 m/s (8.2 ft/s). Its ascent figure is the same 5 m/s, printed as 16.4 ft/s rather than 16 ft/s. |
| Operating temperature | -20 to 45 degrees C (-4 to 113 degrees F)Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet states a narrower range, -10 to 40 degrees C (14 to 104 degrees F), and adds an operating humidity range of 10 to 95 percent. |
| Service ceiling | 3.9 km (12,800 ft) with a 4 kg (8.8 lb) payload, and 2.2 km (7,200 ft) with an 8.7 kg (19.18 lb) payload.Both figures are Inspired Flight's own and both carry the payload weight they were measured with. |
| Tilt and angular rates | Maximum tilt angle 30 degrees. Maximum angular velocity 300 degrees per second in tilt and 45 degrees per second in yaw. |
| Behavior with a motor out | Inspired Flight states the aircraft maintains safe and controlled flight in the event of a motor failure, alerts the operator to land immediately, and stays in a safe manual flying configuration. |
| Flight modes | Position Hold holds GPS position and altitude with responsive controls for faster speeds. Loiter holds GPS position and altitude for slow, precise flying. Auto executes a pre-defined waypoint mission. RTL returns to the takeoff point and lands. Land descends while holding horizontal position. Altitude Hold holds altitude only and is the failsafe mode if GPS is lost. |
| Return to launch behavior | Inspired Flight states the aircraft returns to launch automatically when low battery voltage is detected, and that it also returns to launch if the radio link to the hand controller is lost, climbing to the set RTL altitude first. Inspired Flight recommends setting that altitude above any power lines, trees or structures in the working area. |
Weight, payload and size
| Maximum payload capacity | 8.6 kg (19 lbs) on Inspired Flight's specifications page.Inspired Flight's own store listing states 19.1 lbs instead, and its 2022 IF1200A spec sheet states 8.7 kg (19.1 lbs), and the service ceiling row on the specifications page itself uses 8.7 kg (19.18 lb). Inspired Flight states the capacity is set so the loaded aircraft stays inside the FAA Part 107 55 lb limit, and that with the appropriate certification the aircraft can lift payloads of up to 28.7 lbs. |
| What the mount limits the payload to | Inspired Flight publishes three mounting options with three different limits. Bare payload rails with no damping plate take 0 to 8.7 kg (19.1 lbs). The Midweight Damping Plate takes 0 to 3.0 kg (6.6 lbs) and covers most LiDAR units and mapping cameras. The Heavyweight Damping Plate takes 0 to 5.0 kg (11 lbs) and covers heavier LiDAR.Inspired Flight states the aircraft comes pre-configured with the IF1200 Dovetail Kit, which includes the Midweight Pro Damping Plate rated 0 to 3 kg and the Smart Dovetail payload interface. The aircraft therefore does not reach its headline payload figure on the mount it ships with. |
| Maximum gross takeoff weight | 24.9 kg (54.9 lbs)Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet states 25.0 kg (55.0 lbs) instead. |
| Empty weight and weight with batteries | 7.8 kg (17.2 lbs) without batteries. 16.3 kg (35.9 lbs) with batteries fitted. |
| Size folded and unfolded | Unfolded and flight ready 165.5 by 154 by 76.5 cm (65.1 by 60.6 by 30.2 inches). Folded for stowage 47.5 by 49.5 by 47 cm (18.7 by 19.5 by 18.5 inches). Diagonal size, propeller center to center, 1,025 mm (40.4 inches). |
| Transport case | 64.8 by 64.8 by 58.4 cm (25.5 by 25.5 by 23.0 inches), 29.0 kg (64 lbs) with the aircraft and ground control station inside.Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet gives the same case weight but describes it as the case with the aircraft, without mentioning the ground control station. |
| Layout | Six-rotor hexacopter with folding arms. Inspired Flight designates the arms left front and right front, left and right, and left rear and right rear, with a red navigation light at the left front, green at the right front and white on the other four. The carrying handle carries the dual GNSS receivers and doubles as the battery clamp. |
| Propellers | Folding propellers, marked 26.2 by 8.5R in positions 2, 4 and 5 and 26.2 by 8.5L in positions 1, 3 and 6. Each propeller is held by four screws and a locating pin, driven with a 2.5 mm hex driver.Inspired Flight calls for blue Loctite 242 on the screws and a torque of 1.2 N. Inspired Flight names the propeller two ways in its own materials: 26.2 by 8.5 on its maintenance page, and TM 24.2 by 7.9 in the parts list at the back of its pilot operating handbook. Confirm the designation before ordering spares. |
Power and batteries
| Battery | 16 Ah 15C 44.4 V rechargeable lithium polymer in a 12S1P configuration, 710.4 Wh nominal energy, 4,250 g each with a tolerance of plus or minus 100 g, measuring 80 by 150 by 217.5 mm.Inspired Flight states this information is summarized from the original battery manufacturer, Tattu, and points to that manufacturer's own smart battery manual for the detailed technical specification. |
| How many batteries a flight takes | Inspired Flight's battery set for this aircraft is a pair of these batteries, which it describes as one full set designed to power a full flight cycle. |
| Discharge and voltage limits | Maximum continuous discharge current 100 A, with a peak of 150 A for less than three seconds. Maximum charging voltage 50.4 V, which is 4.2 V per cell. Inspired Flight's recommended landing voltage is 43.2 V (3.6 V per cell), and its recommended forced landing voltage is 42.6 V (3.55 V per cell).Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet gives a different continuous discharge figure for the same battery, 400 amps at 25C, against the 100 A maximum and the 16 Ah 15C model designation on its current battery specifications page. Confirm the rating for the batteries supplied with your aircraft. |
| Battery temperature | Recommended charging temperature 10 to 40 degrees C. Recommended discharging temperature 10 to 60 degrees C.Both are narrower than the aircraft's own operating temperature range of -20 to 45 degrees C. |
| The batteries are not hot-swappable | Inspired Flight states the IF1200A batteries are not hot-swappable, because the large potential voltage difference between the two batteries during a swap damages them. |
| Battery storage | Inspired Flight calls for checking each cell's voltage at least once every three months during long storage, with each cell held between 3.85 V and 3.90 V. If a cell falls below 3.7 V, or cells on a 12S pack differ by more than 100 mV, Inspired Flight calls for a full charge and discharge cycle before the pack is used again. |
| Battery sets and charging | Inspired Flight sells a battery set of two 16 Ah batteries on its own, and a battery kit of four batteries with a TA3200 charger, charging cables and a rugged transport case.Inspired Flight names the charger for this aircraft three ways across its own material: TA3200 on the store and in current documentation, TA3000 for the legacy unit, and Tattu TA1200 in the pilot operating handbook. Confirm which charger ships with your order. |
Flight controller, positioning and the payload interface
| Flight controller and software | CubePilot Cube Blue H7, running ArduPilot Copter.Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet adds that the flight controller carries triple redundant IMUs. |
| Positioning | Two CubePilot Here3 M8P GNSS and compass units. |
| What happens when GNSS fails | Inspired Flight states the two GNSS antennas on top of the aircraft are redundant, so if one fails the other still supplies position data. If GNSS is jammed or lost altogether, the aircraft drops into Altitude Hold, leaving the pilot manual control to land it.Inspired Flight's handbook calls for a minimum of ten satellites before flight. |
| Payload interface | IF1200A Universal Payload Interface, version 2.1 or 3.0.Inspired Flight's 2022 IF1200A spec sheet names version 2.1 only. Confirm which version the aircraft you are buying carries before ordering a payload against it. |
| Payload connector | A 25 position two-row male pin signal connector, TE Connectivity AMPLIMITE 109 series, part number 205560-2, rated 5 A per pin. Inspired Flight's datasheet applies to power distribution board part number 101599 revision G and later.Inspired Flight's own pin table carries this instruction against the battery voltage pin: disconnect payloads before powering on. |
| Payload power rails | 5 V, 12 V or 15 V, and 18 V, each rated at a maximum 5 A. A 12S battery voltage rail is present on the same connector, also at a maximum 5 A. Inspired Flight names the 18 V rail as the supply for companion computers.Inspired Flight's specifications page lists the rails as 5v, 12v/15v, 18v. Its 2022 spec sheet adds 44.4v, the 12S battery voltage, to that list. |
| Payload signal lines | The connector also carries four PWM channels from a PWM controller on the flight core's second i2c bus, two further PWM lines for camera triggering, two UART pairs to the flight controller, and an SBUS line for gimbal control. |
| FPV camera | Inspired Flight states on its own store listing that the aircraft has a built-in FPV camera giving the pilot a first-person view of its surroundings in real time. Its documentation covers operating a Sony RX0 FPV camera mounted to the aircraft, and states the camera is mounted upside-down and comes pre-configured from the factory for that orientation.Inspired Flight publishes its NDAA compliance specification sheet for this aircraft without the FPV camera, so the FPV camera sits outside what that sheet covers. |
Ground control station options
| Two options, chosen at order | Inspired Flight offers the aircraft with a choice of ground control station: the GS-ONE, or the Herelink. Its own product page presents the two as a configuration choice rather than an accessory bought afterwards. |
| GS-ONE | 7-inch high-brightness touchscreen on an Android platform running Inspired Ground Control, a 10,400 mAh removable lithium polymer battery giving up to 5 hours per charge, an internal backup battery that keeps the controller alive about 3 minutes so the main battery can be swapped without powering down, 2.4 GHz with AES-128 encryption, USB-C charging, and 1,200 g. Inspired Flight states it is Blue UAS and NDAA compliant.Inspired Flight's IF1200 page states the display is 2,000 nits and daylight-viewable. Its GS-ONE page adds that the screen stays visible when the pilot is wearing polarized sunglasses. |
| Herelink | 5.46-inch integrated touchscreen on an Android platform running Inspired Ground Control, a 4,950 mAh internal lithium-ion battery giving up to 4 hours per charge, 2.4 GHz with AES-128 encryption and a maximum signal range of 5.5 km, Micro USB charging, and 920 g.Inspired Flight's IF1200 page states the display is 1,000 nits. The Defense Innovation Unit note recorded above applies to the Blue Herelink. |
| What the handbook still describes | Inspired Flight's pilot operating handbook, revision 1.02, describes three models of the IF1200A that differ only by remote control: HereLink Blue, HereLink Black, and a Long Range Telemetry version using a Jeti DS-12 hand controller with an RFD900x-US radio plugged into a customer-supplied laptop or tablet. Inspired Flight's current store offers the GS-ONE and the Herelink.The handbook states all three of its versions are identical apart from the remote control. It predates the GS-ONE, so confirm which controller and which documentation apply to the aircraft you are buying. |
Warranty, service and maintenance
| Warranty period | Inspired Flight warrants new Inspired Flight branded aircraft and parts for twelve months from the delivery date against defects in materials and workmanship, under normal use and only when the aircraft is operated, maintained and updated in line with Inspired Flight's own published materials and approved firmware.Inspired Flight states that coverage applies only to buyers who purchase directly from Inspired Flight or from an Inspired Flight authorized reseller, is non-transferable, and applies only to the original buyer. It also states that warranty service is available only in the region where the aircraft was purchased unless Inspired Flight approves otherwise in writing. |
| Batteries are outside the warranty | Inspired Flight expressly excludes batteries from this warranty, covering them only under separate battery warranty terms if any. It states separately that batteries are not included with a certified refurbished unit and in that case must be bought as new products. |
| What else is excluded | Inspired Flight excludes any crash, hard landing, collision, tip-over, loss of control, flyaway, fire or water exposure whatever the cause, along with operation outside published limits and use with low, defective or damaged batteries. Coverage is void where the aircraft is altered from Inspired Flight approved configurations, opened or repaired by an unauthorized party, or run with parts, accessories or software Inspired Flight has not approved. |
| Third-party payloads | Inspired Flight states that third-party products and payloads are covered only by the original manufacturer's own warranty program, and that Inspired Flight is not liable for loss of or damage to any payload, sensor or gimbal arising from a crash or from operation of the aircraft. |
| Returns | Except for batteries, Inspired Flight allows a return for refund within fourteen days of original delivery, subject to as-new condition with no activated registrations, all original accessories and packaging, a return authorization issued in advance, and an Inspired Flight quality control evaluation. A ten percent restocking fee applies unless Inspired Flight waives it in writing, and a unit with a broken factory seal is not accepted without written approval. |
| Inspired Care plans | Inspired Flight sells annual Inspired Care plans per aircraft in four tiers. Foundation comes with the aircraft and carries the twelve month factory warranty and Inspired Suite software access. Starter adds a yearly battery offer, repair, rental and replacement aircraft discounts, and ground shipping. Pro cuts the support response to four hours and adds the Inspired Certify multi-point inspection and flight test, deeper discounts and a training discount. Elite cuts the response to one hour on a dedicated hotline, adds a day of aircraft training at no charge, two-day shipping, and one replacement aircraft under the contract at no charge.Inspired Flight's support team is open Monday to Friday, 7 AM to 5 PM Pacific. Response times are 48 hours on Foundation and Starter. The Elite replacement covers one aircraft per contract, does not cover gross negligence, and later replacements are discounted rather than free. Training is limited to four trainees and pilot travel is not covered. |
| Recommended maintenance | Before each flight Inspired Flight calls for an inspection of all moving components, a propeller damage check, dusting of all lenses and a battery health check. At 25 flight hours it calls for all visible screws to be inspected and tightened to its torque guidelines and the motors cleaned with an air can. Every three months an unused aircraft goes into battery storage mode.Inspired Flight publishes two further maintenance schedules that do not match this one. Its Maintenance Schedule sheet is built around every flight and 10, 100, 200, 400 and 800 flight hours, and states that motor and motor bearing replacement requires the aircraft to be returned to Inspired Flight. Its pilot operating handbook, revision 1.02, counts the intervals in flights rather than flight hours, at every flight and 10, 25, 50, 100, 400, 800 and 1,600 flights, and states that those intervals assume flights of 30 minutes in length. Ask which schedule applies to the aircraft you are buying. |
| Checking the motors | Inspired Flight's own bearing check is to spin each motor by hand, where all six should coast to a stop with the same sound, then grip each motor by the propeller hub and rock it sideways, where there should be zero or minimal play and all six should feel the same. |
How to order
| What you choose at order | Two things are set when the aircraft is configured: the ground control station, GS-ONE or Herelink, and the Inspired Care tier. |
| Speak to us | Call +1 888 850 6533 and a specialist will confirm the controller, the payload interface version, the mount your payload needs and the battery and charger count before you order. |