Article Posted on : - Sep 30, 2009

The Harop is a bigger, improved version of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) Harpy anti-radiation drone and is equipped with an electro-optical sensor, enabling the operator to select targets during the loitering time over the target area.

Harop, a long endurance LM, like Harpy is launched from a vehicle-mounted container, but it has an electro-optical seeker in addition to its anti-radar homing system. This allows an operator to identify and hit moving targets, or to attack shut-down radar.

The 2.5m (8.2ft)-long drone is powered by a heavy-fuel engine and its foldable wing has a 3m span. It is equipped with a 23kg (51lb) warhead and can hit static and moving targets.

The expendable aerial vehicle combines the speed, precision and lethality of a guided missile with persistence, sensors and connectivity of a tactical UAV.

Harop can remain on a mission for six hours, performing area surveillance and reconnaissance, in support of specific area suppression and denial operations. It is fitted with an electro-optical payload, utilizing a high performance FLIR and color CCD, providing an electro-optical seeker, covering 360 degrees hemispherical field of regard.

This sensor can search, detect and target, high value re-locatable, time critical, land or sea-based, moving targets, reporting their position with pinpoint accuracy, at long ranges.

Indian Air Force (IAF) has confirmed that the first batch of Harop killer drones ordered from Israel would be inducted by 2011.

- Courtesy :-
                 www.flightglobal.com
                 www.defense-update.com