Israel’s Elbit System announced on 11 July that it was rolled out its new Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) that features adverse weather capabilities and is fully compliant with NATO’s Standardization Agreement (STANAG) 4671, qualifying it to be safely integrated into civilian airspace and fly in the same environment with manned aircraft.
The new unmanned aircraft is called the Hermes 900 StarLiner. A series of the Hermes 900 StarLiner (also known as Hermes 900 HFE in the Swiss program) is currently being assembled for the Swiss Armed Forces and is scheduled to be delivered and integrated into Switzerland NAS during 2019.
Hermes 900 StarLiner GCS is designed based on the legacy of the Hermes Family of UAS and on commercial Airliners’ concept and displays. Each of the identical crew consoles in the GCS can be operated both as pilot and payload operator.
The UAS features over-the-horizon, persistent, multi-mission, multi-sensor capabilities with high bandwidth to stream of multiple sensors in real-time and a class-leading payload carrying capacity.
Payload configurations and capabilities:
- Electro Optical: Multi spectral payloads (SPECTRO XR, Wescam MX15/20, SkEye WAPS, MIST G), Laser designator/marker
- Radar: SAR / GMTI Radar and MPR Maritime Radar
- EW Payloads
Security events, such as the dismantling of ISIS and diverse geo-political tensions, have caused European countries to re-orient defense efforts from involvement in far-away conflicts to coping with intensifying homeland and border security challenges. This shift has resulted in a growing demand for advanced yet mature UAS that can be safely integrated into civilian airspace and provide the technological capabilities that are required to effectively and safely perform complex homeland and border security missions.