When it comes to military forces, Israel has become well known as one of the most advanced military powers despite the small size of their country. As a nation that is in a constant state of military readiness the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has always employed top of the line military technology for a tactical edge. Not only is the IDF recognized as one of the most capable military forces, but they have become leaders in military grade drone technology. Responsible for the design and manufacture of the IDF’s drones is Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).

The IAI is owned by the government of Israel and supplies the country with civilian and military aircraft. In the 1970’s, IAI began developing drones for the IDF. Currently, IAI has 13 drones in use by the IDF such as the Ranger, Searcher, and Eitan. The drones developed by IAI have been purchased by ally forces around the world. One of the drones the IAI is best know for is the MALE (Medium Altitude Long Endurance) Heron, which the IDF began utilizing in 2005. The combat Heron is used by military forces from the United States of America, Germany, Australia, and India to name a few. In fact, India has become such a fan of the Heron that it is the number one drone used by the Indian Armed Forces.

The Heron is 27ft 11in long with a 54ft 6in wingspan. It has a 551lbs payload capacity and a maximum takeoff weight of 2,535lbs. The Heron can reach speeds of 129MPH, climbing to a maximum altitude of 33,000ft at 490ft per minute. The Heron can remain airborne for 52 hours positioning it as an ideal surveillance drone for military awareness. Earlier this month, IAI and the Heron made history by remotely piloting and landing the UAV at a civilian airport.

On September 16, 2020, IAI launched a Heron from Ein Shemer airfield, a military airfield about 31 miles northeast of Tel Aviv. The drone was remotely flown and landed at Ben Gurion Airport which is about 12 miles southeast of Tel Aviv. As Israel’s primary international airport, Ben Gurion is also the country’s busiest airport with over 24.8million civilian passengers traveling through it in 2019. The test flight and landing were done to test IAI’s Long Runner Operating System. Long Runner is a system that enables unmanned vehicles to complete long range missions of upwards of 930 miles remotely. Long Runner maintains a continuous satellite connection for drones to takeoff, travel, and land automatically. Not only did the Heron successfully land at Ben Gurion, but it did not land on an isolated runway, but rather among civilians and other non military aircraft. After landing at Ben Gurion, operators at Ein Shemer remotely launched the Heron and flew it back to base.

Drone sightings have become more and more common now. Small UAVs are being used all over the world commercially and recreationally. However, it is well known that drones are restricted from entering into the airspace surrounding airports. Similarly, large military drones are restricted from flying over civilian airspace. For a country like Israel that is under constant military threat, the IDF needs to find a way to safely fly their HALE (High Altitude Long Endurance) and MALE drones through civilian territories in order to protect the country. As Executive Vice President and General Manager at IAI Moshe Levy said, “The future of the flight industry would require civilian airfields to make room for UAVs.” As a drone superpower, Israel is paving the way for the next progression of drones to be sharing airspace with civilians safely.