More UAVs for the Israeli Air Force
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עברית (Hebrew)
The number of unmanned air vehicles (UAV) operated by the Israeli air force (IAF) will grow in the near future. This is a result of the lessons from last year’s “Protective Edge” operation against the Hamas in Gaza.
The UAVs operated by the IAF have been strained to their limits during the operation. From mini UAS like the Skylark operated by the ground forces through the Heron and Hermes-450 and up to the huge Heron TP, the UAS squadrons have been operating extensively during the 50 days of the operation. As reported here , the IAF has realized some time ago that the increasing use of UAS will demand top availability which can be achieved only by taking measures across the board. One result is a health management systems for UAS which now is being developed.
The new health systems that are being developed specifically for UAS are designed to give an advanced warning about a problem that in most cases develops from a minor one to a critical one which causes the loss of a UAS.
But a higher utilization is not enough and the IAF is asking for more UAS. The main demand comes from the IAF but ground units that operate small UAVs like the Elbit systems Skylark, are also waiting in line for the extra budgets that will allow them to increase the UAV inventory.
