Tel Aviv: The growing demand for different types of loitering weapon systems brought Israeli company UVision Air Ltd. to develop a launcher that can handle different types of its loitering weapon systems. The launcher is capable of launching all the versions of the company’s Hero systems.
According to UVision, Hero launcher system is giving field forces operational flexibility and enables them to choose and launch the most suitable system, depending on the nature of the mission and target – from the Hero-30 for smaller ‘surgical’ attacks, through the Hero-120 for medium-sized and armoured targets, up to the Hero-400 for long-range and fortified targets.
According to the Israeli company, forces can now launch the advanced Hero series of munition systems from a single launcher installed on one platform, gaining terrain dominance and a capability to engage targets at tactical ranges in excess of 75 km. The new launcher is designed for modular adaptation to various types and sizes of platform, from armoured vehicles to large, medium, and small watercraft, manned or autonomous. The ability to store, transport and launch the Hero loitering munition systems from a pre-loaded, sealed canister further increases battle readiness and provides the forces with available and effective missiles.
The Hero series of loitering munitions consists of eight loitering munition systems, designed for different missions at various ranges using various types of payloads. The HERO systems are the fastest sensor-to-shooter loitering munitions, allowing forces in the front-line to independently locate time sensitive targets, and track and attack with pin-point precision. Each munition can handle different missions, ranging from lightweight static or moving targets (such as light-duty vehicles and human targets) to larger fortified or heavily armoured targets such as MBT (Main Battle Tank), enemy air defences and other strategic objectives.
The Hero series’ unique design enables the munitions to carry out precision strikes in urban areas or remote locations, with minimal collateral damage. In cases where an attack is aborted, the systems can be recalled and another target selected, or retrieved via an on-board recovery system for a future mission. With extremely low noise and thermal signature, these systems are integrated with highly-advanced, stabilized electro-optic day/night cameras, and are ideal for deployment from air, land and naval platforms.
-The writer is an Israel-based freelance journalist. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda
