Spain Snaps up Searcher-II UAVs for Afghan Mission

Spanish Searcher, Herat(click to view full) In April 2007, Spanish reader Pedro Lucio alerted us to an official announcement that Spain’s Ministry of Defence had issued a EUR 14.37 million (then about $19.5 million) contract for unmanned air vehicles that would be deployed to support Spanish troops in Afghanistan. The contract was awarded to a consortium formed by Indra Sistemas and EADS-CASA, and Israel’s IAI; they will produce IAI’s Searcher-II-J UAV, which received excellent reviews from India in the wake of the 2004 tsunami. Ongoing updates include delivery, a complementary buy of mini-UAVs, and the first flight in Afghanistan. The key characteristics of Spain’s new sistema de Plataforma Autonoma Sensorizada de Inteligencia (PASI), and contract developments, include… The Searcher UAV System Searcher II system(click to view full) Each Searcher-II system comprises 4 UAVs, a ground control station, a launch/recovery system, a ground data terminal, and a remote video terminal. The UAV can also be fitted with a range of surveillance equipment, from turrets with day/night optics, cameras, and laser markers; to SAR radars that scan the ground below; to electronic signals interception packages. IAI lists the Searcher-II’s range as 300 km, with a total endurance of 20 hours in ideal […]