A maritime version of the MALE Heron 1 drone replaces the Israeli patrol aircraft
For Israel, the economy of the sea is becoming increasingly important. The ports built in Ahsdod and Haifa thus facilitate trade with the European Union and the United States, while access to the Red Sea, thanks to Eilat, Asia by freeing itself from the Suez Canal.
But the discovery of immense natural gas deposits (Tamar and Leviathan) further increased the needs of the Israeli navy, especially since there are disputes over the boundaries of the State's exclusive economic zone (EEZ) Hebrew. In addition, it is also a question of preventing any terrorist infiltration via the sea as well as trafficking.
To monitor its EEZ, Israel has 3 IAI-1124 Sea Scan "Shahaf" patrol aircraft, operated by the Israeli Air Force and Space Squadron (Heyl Ha'Avir) squadron 195. These aircraft, which were commissioned in 1977, should have been replaced in the 1990s. However, this project was canceled and was eventually modernized in 2001.
However, these three IAI-1124 Seascan can not be extended indefinitely and will be replaced not by "traditional" maritime patrol aircraft but by drones.
Indeed, last week, Israel Aerospace Industries announced that the naval version of the Heron 1 Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) will take over the missions previously handled by IAI-1124 Seascan.
"Heron 1 has proven its ability to carry out long-term maritime patrol missions. Thanks to its unique features and improved payloads, Heron 1 provides a better solution for maritime patrol than is currently the case with the Israeli Air Force, "said Shaul Shahar, an IAI official.
This Heron 1 "maritime" carries an "advanced" electro-optic payload, namely the Multi-mission Optronic Stabilized Payload (MOSP), developed by the IAI Tamam Division and a light surveillance radar designed by ELTA.
"The Heron Maritime can simultaneously carry multiple loads and sensors, enabling it to provide a full range of capabilities for intelligence gathering, target detection and identification," said the Israeli industrialist. With an endurance of 20 hours, it is able to follow a hundred objectives to a distance of 322