Military
The German government has approved the deployment of another Heron unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) to the United Nations mission in Mali, which will bring the total to four. On 5 May, the budget committee of the Bundestag released funds for an extension and expansion of the operator contract for Heron
Military
Air force soldiers responsible for operating the Iron Dome shot down an IDF drone during the recent fighting in Gaza because they mistakenly identified it as a hostile aircraft, causing great concern among IDF officials. This unusual incident sent shockwaves through the Air Force, which operates the Iron Dome air
Military
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems is teasing a new air-launched effect, a part of a growing portfolio of in-development drones that it plans to launch from its MQ-9A Reaper and MQ-1C Gray Eagle unmanned air vehicles (UAVs). The company released a digital rendering of two UAVs flying
Military
Poland will buy 24 armed drones from Turkey, the Polish defence minister said on May 22nd., becoming the first NATO member to buy Turkish-made unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). The Bayraktar TB2 drones, the first of which are due to be delivered next year, will be armed with anti-tank
Military
The Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) introduced new drone, radar, and missile systems in a ceremony on May 21. They were unveiled in a ceremony attended by IRGC Commander Major General Hossein Salami and other senior commanders. They included a wide-body and heavy Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) named “Gaza”
Military
A locally developed UAV crashed on May 21st. into the ocean off southeastern Taiwan during a military mission. There were no reports of injuries. The Rui Yuan (銳鳶, Sharp Hawk) long-range surveillance drone, used by the Naval Maritime Tactical Reconnaissance Group, took off from a training field in Taitung
Weapons Systems / Lasers
The IDF said Saturday it spotted a squad of Hamas terrorists about to launch an explosives-laden drone at Israel, but instead had the drone crash onto the two terrorists, killing them. “The IDF thwarted an attempt by Hamas terror operatives in Gaza City to launch a drone armed with
Control Stations
On April 23, 2021, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. demonstrated enhanced situational awareness and targeting capability for ground forces during a company-funded technology demonstration at Yuma Proving Grounds, Arizona. The demonstration focused on enabling a Joint Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) to control the Electro-optical/Infrared (EO/IR) sensor
Accidents
One of our astute readers in Myanmar forwarded these photos of a mystery drone that crash-landed in rural Myanmar and is probably operated by the Myanmar Airforce. The accident occurred not so far from Pyin Oo Lwin, Central Myanmar on 5th May. Our source understands that this is a
Testing
The Skyborg leadership team conducted a two-hours and ten minute flight test April 29 of the Skyborg autonomy core system (ACS) aboard a Kratos UTAP-22 tactical unmanned vehicle at Tyndall AFB, Florida. Termed Milestone 1 of the Autonomous Attritable Aircraft Experimentation (AAAx) campaign, the ACS performed a series
Military
Aeronautics Group introduces its Orbiter 4 small tactical UAS, capable of performing long-range, long-endurance maritime patrol missions. The Orbiter 4’s high-performance EO/IR and MPR payloads are ideal for maritime monitoring, gas and oil rigs protection, illegal activity tracking, and search & rescue. It has already
Training
Crews of the Azerbaijani Army’s unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) are carrying out training flights, the Defence Ministry’s press service reported on April 4. The flights are in line with the 2021 combat training plan approved by Defence Minister Zakir Hasanov. As part of the training, the crews increase