Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), a provider of defense and commercial aerospace products, has announced that it is enhancing its Heron TP UAV’s capabilities with long-range persistent surveillance options and area dominance capabilities. The company aims to achieve this by integrating the Heron with a high definition M-19HD EO payload, developed and produced by IAI’s Tamam Division.
The M-19HD is designed to withstand severe environmental conditions and to operate in demanding high-end applications on various platforms such as high/medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (HALE/MALE UAVs), fixed-wing aircraft, combat helicopters, aerostats, and maritime vessels. It has successfully completed flight tests onboard several platforms including the Heron 1 UAS, and is currently being offered to various customers.
The M-19HD is a High-Definition, multispectral, multi-sensor observation and targeting payload (which can simultaneously incorporate up to seven sensors). The M-19HD enables continuous day/night surveillance under all weather conditions and provides outstanding acquisition ranges due to its powerful sensors, high stabilization and unique image processing capabilities. The M-19HD reduces operator workload and improves situational awareness by virtue of its multimode automatic video tracker (AVT). It also provides accurate geo-location capabilities using an embedded IMU/GPS (Inertial Measurement Unit/Global Positioning System).
Avi Elisha, General Manager of IAI’s Tamam Division, said: “We are proud to integrate the M-19HD payload on IAI’s flagship UAS – the Heron TP. We strongly believe that its high performance and unique image processing features can confer significant advantages on supplying Heron TP customers in their operational activities.”
M-19HD characteristics:
• Dimensions: width: 22.6″ (576 mm), height: 27.3″ (694 mm)
• Weight: 75 – 85 kg (configuration-dependent)
•Options include: 2 HD Day Cameras (Zoom and Spotter), HD IR Zoom Camera, Laser Designator, Laser Range Finder, Laser Pointer, Laser Illuminator (in near infrared – NIR) and electron-multiplied charged-coupled-device (EMCCD) camera or short-wave infrared (SWIR) camera.
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