The Royal Thai Army (RTA) has introduced the Elbit Hermes 450 unmanned aerial system (UAS), becoming the second Southeast Asian country after Singapore to operate this drone. Elbit Systems says that the H450 has now performed “40,000 successful combat missions,” but like other Israeli companies, it does not specify customers. Continue reading
Category Archives: Military UAS
Guardian Concludes Demonstration Flights
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) announced that the Guardian Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) has concluded the first large-scale demonstration flights in Japan. The demonstration flights, which took place from 10 – 23 May were intended to promote the civil and scientific applications of the RPA. Continue reading
Israeli Drone Crashes in Syria
An Israeli drone crashed in Syrian territory Tuesday evening, as troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar Assad prepared an assault on the rebel-held Quneitra and Daraa. Continue reading
Pentagon Bans Marines from Using COTS Quadcopters
The US Marine Corps has shelved several new, small drones – at least temporarily – amid a Pentagon ban and assessment on the cybersecurity of commercial, off-the-shelf, unmanned aerial systems, a service spokesman told USNI News. Continue reading
GA-ASI Gets $39M MQ-9 Reaper Marine Corps Services Contract
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, California, has been awarded an undefinitized contract action with a not-to-exceed value of $39,566,023 to provide additional unmanned air system intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance surge support for Marine Corps Task Force Southwest operations in the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of operations (AOR) using contractor-owned/contractor-
GA-ASI Conducts Successful Lightning Tests on MQ-9B
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. (GA-ASI) used its second full-scale MQ-9B to conduct successful lightning tests at its facility in Poway, California last month. The test was conducted jointly between engineers from GA-ASI and NTS Pittsfield, a recognized leader in the development of sophisticated lightning protection systems for the aerospace industry. Continue reading
French Army to Receive Patroller in 2019
The arrival of Safran’s Patroller tactical unmanned aerial system next year will provide the French army with significantly upgraded capabilities and increased performance with a lower logistics footprint for reconnaissance operations and other missions, industry and military officials said June 12. Continue reading
Turkey Develops New Heavy Armed UAS
Unmanned air system manufacturer Baykar Makina is developing a new heavy armed unmanned aerial vehicle called Akinci, according to Turkish media reports. Continue reading







