AircraftNews.Com

AUSTRALIAN troops in Afghanistan have gained a major new platform to assist in the fight against Taliban insurgents with the RAAF acquiring Israeli-made Heron unmanned aerial vehicles.

The Heron Manufactured by Israel Aerospace industries is a 26 M span 1500 kg pilotless vehicle capable of remain aloft for over a day and can deliver high quality real time images in the visual infra red and microwave spectrums.
Powered by a piston engine and cruising at 100 kts it is GPS guided and can take off and land autonomously. There is the option for it to be either pre programmed or remote controlled or a combination of both.

The Rudd government has rushed through the multi-million-dollar lease of the one-tonne aircraft to provide troops on the ground with far greater situational awareness thanks to its superior infra-red cameras and other high-tech sensors.

A joint RAAF and army team is operating two Herons from Kandahar airfield in partnership with a Canadian Heron UAV team. The unarmed Heron can stay aloft for more than 40 hours at an altitude of up to 10,000m and offers wide-area real-time video to commanders on the ground, as well as to command headquarters in Australia. The hope is that the all-round day-night capability of the Heron will reduce the incidence of roadside bomb attacks by insurgents, given the aircraft’s endurance and ability to scout out patrol routes used by ground forces.

Australian troops operating in Oruzgan have used smaller hand-launched tactical UAVs for some time but the Heron will be the first high-performance, long-endurance UAV to enter service with the RAAF.

The air force is leasing the new capability via a contract with a Canadian company, Macdonald Dettwiler and Associates.

Close collaboration with the Canadians has enabled the speedy introduction of the Heron into the Australian Defence Force and comes at a time when coalition forces are facing a harder counter-insurgency struggle in southern Afghanistan.

“This high-resolution intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capability will enhance the capability of the Australian forces in Afghanistan,” Defence Minister John Faulkner said yesterday.

Senator Faulkner stressed the benefits of a long-endurance UAV in enhancing the security of troops on the ground through the provision of high-quality, real-time intelligence.
From http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,26041896-31477,00.html