LONDON– Israeli defense companies made drone technology with a vertical take-off and landing capability a focus at this year’s DSEI defense and security trade exhibition in London, unveiling two new systems with launch customers already secured.
This past year, the tube-launched Hero series of loitering munitions produced by German company Rheinmetall and its Israeli-based partner Uvision have seen great success in Europe, with sales announced to Italy and Hungary.
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This deployment method does bring about a number of logistical challenges for operators.
“The challenge of tube-launched loitering munitions in urban warfare environments is that you typically need a certain amount of open space in front of you and a clear path with no personnel in between,” Alon Tamir, senior business development and marketing manager at Israel Aerospace Industries told Defense News last week at the DSEI event. “It makes where you can launch more complex.”
In order to solve this issue and provide customers with greater flexibility for launch sites, IAI developed the Rotem Alpha loitering munition, capable of hovering, taking off and landing vertically. Unveiled at DSEI, the system is also equipped with a demonstrated anti-tank warhead and comes directly from the lessons learned from the Ukraine war, according to the company representative.
“Much of the world never thought we would widely see tanks fighting in Europe, yet here we are… We knew we had to develop a loitering munition with an anti-tank capability to respond to the demand for customers looking to destroy any type of military vehicle,” Tamir said.
The Rotem Alpha has a range of about 40 kilometers (25 miles) and can carry up to 8 kilograms (18 pounds) of payload. It has secured a launch customer, a NATO country, although the company would not say which one.
Another Israeli company to have launched a new system at the London-based conference is Elbit Systems with the reveal of its Skylark 1 eVTOL drone. It is the latest model of the Skylark unmanned aerial systems, which have been operated by the Israeli Defense Forces since 2008.
The company has been contracted to provide the Skylark 1 eVTOL to the Artillery Corps of the IDF. Training operators to use the drone only takes on average a few weeks, according to a company official.
Ziv Avni, vice president of marketing and business development at Elbit, highlighted the advantages of VTOL platforms, which he referred to as a clear market trend.
“This capability allows for greater ease of operation where the drone can land or be launched from anywhere as it is runway independent and landing is usually more precise, which makes it less likely critical payloads or infrastructure are damaged,” Avni said. “Its ability to hover in place also makes them ideal for operations requiring precise control and stability such as surveillance.”
C4ISRNet
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