(En - 28 Dec 2014 - Actu) Drones : la filière israélienne marque des points à l’export

Premier exportateur de drones devant les Etats-Unis, Israël continue de remporter de jolis succès à l’étranger, malgré un environnement plus concurrentiel. Voilà une dizaine de jours, l’agence d’armement de la Corée du Sud a annoncé son intention d’acquérir trois drones Heron du champion national, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), pour répondre à ses besoins sécuritaires. Une commande estimée à 36,5 millions de dollars (30 millions d’euros).

Séoul avait déjà fait affaire avec le groupe israélien pour se doter d’avions sans pilote de type Searcher, mais il s’agirait de son premier achat de drones MALE (moyenne altitude longue endurance). Et du vingtième marché à l’export, pour le système Heron, le produit best-seller de la division MALAT (avions sans pilote d’IAI), qui a servi de base au drone Harfang en service en France.

 

Pionnier du secteur, le fabricant n’est pas le seul groupe israélien à continuer de marquer des points. En juin, c’était au tour du Département de la défense suisse de faire savoir qu’il avait retenu le drone MALE Hermes 900 construit par l’entreprise de Haïfa, Elbit Systems.

 

Un contrat évalué à 250 millions de francs suisses (205 millions d’euros). Dans le cadre du programme d’acquisition d’armes 2015, ces drones de reconnaissance non armés remplaceront d’ici à 2020 les drones ADS 95 Ranger utilisés par les forces armées suisses depuis 2001. Ils étaient en compétition avec les Super Heron d’Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).

 

Deux exemples parmi d’autres de la vitalité de la filière drone israélienne. Cette industrie a totalisé 4,6 milliards de ventes à l’international, entre 2015 et 2012, selon une étude de cabinet Frost & Sullivan, ce qui la classe au premier rang mondial devant les Etats-Unis (2,9 milliards de dollars), très orientés vers leur marché domestique. Pour autant, l’Etat hébreu doit lutter pour garder son avance historique.

 

L’an passé, plusieurs pays européens – dont la France – ont préféré acquérir des avions sans pilote américains Reaper (General Atomics) pour le renouvellement de leur flotte de drones stratégiques. Plutôt que de se fournir en Heron TP, le dernier né d’IAI, qui n’a pas encore trouvé son premier client à l’export.

 

Au sein de la firme israélienne, on tente toutefois de minimiser cette déconvenue. «  Peu de pays peuvent se permettre de s’offrir un système de drone stratégique  », glisse un responsable. D’autant qu’IAI n’a pas totalement renoncé au marché français. Le groupe israélien tente en effet de rentrer dans la compétition française « restreinte » pour le futur système de drone tactique organisée par la DGA, qui comprend les offres de Thales et Sagem.

 

Associé à l’industriel français Latécoère, il a soumis une proposition non sollicitée qui s’appuie sur le drone Pelerin, un dérivé du Heron, répondant aux besoins de l’armée de terre. Mais la partie s’annonce d’autant plus difficile, sur ce marché très concurrentiel, que le groupe israélien doit trouver un mandataire tricolore.

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(En - 28 Dec 2014 - News) 38 female IAF pilots shatter the glass firmament

Over the past 20 years, ever since Alice Miller broke the gender barrier by petitioning the Supreme Court for the right to enlist in the Israel Air Force’s prestigious flight school course, a total of 38 women have received pilots’ wings, the army weekly Bamahane reported.

Half of the graduates are combat aviators — with 16 combat navigators, three combat pilots, seven helicopter pilots, and 12 cargo pilots and navigators, including a deputy squadron commander.

The Defense Ministry and Israel Defense Forces initially rejected Miller’s request to enlist in the course in 1993 “not because she is a woman,” Maj. Gen. Herzl Bodinger — the commander of the IAF at the time — wrote in an affidavit, “but mainly because her anticipated length of service [placing an emphasis on reserve duty] is inconsistent with the army’s preconditions for the training of a member of an air crew.”

 

That same year, president Ezer Weizman, a former air force commander, was far more blunt about the basis for the long-standing gender exclusion. “Meidele,” he reportedly told Miller — using a Yiddish word for “young lady” — “have you ever seen a man sewing a pair of socks?” To boot, Weizman claimed that “women are incapable of withstanding the pressures placed on a fighter pilot.”

The court disagreed. It ruled in a 3-2 decision that “closing the aviation course to women violates their dignity and degrades them. It also, albeit unintentionally, provides support for the degrading slogan: ‘The best men for the air force, and the best women for its pilots.’” 

 

Miller, an officer who had a civilian’s pilot license and was serving in the academic reserves at the time, was allowed to try out for the army’s most elite course, but was deemed unfit.

Although the pre-state Yishuv trained female pilots, some of whom flew missions in the War of Independence and the 1956 Suez War, Sheri Rahat, an F-16 combat navigator, became, in 1998, the first female graduate in nearly five decades. Three years later, Roni Zuckerman, a granddaughter of Zivia Lubetkin and Yitzhak Zuckerman, two leaders of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, graduated as the first combat pilot.

 

Nonetheless, IAF officers told the army weekly that it is still hard to typify the female pilot. “I feel that still today, 20 years later, we do not know how to characterize the profile of the female pilot as we do that of the male pilot,” said Maj. Racheli Weinberg, the head of a unit that seeks out potential air crew enlistees. “The evolution of it is much slower, and not enough time has elapsed to make it researchable, which is why we are looking to pass through our ‘strainer’ as many women as possible in order to understand the characteristics of the female Israeli Air Force pilot.”

 

The most recent course, which began in July, was comprised of a mere seven percent women, a figure that the army seeks to increase by lifting all limitations on the initial screening process, which was, until recently, geared more toward male candidates.

 

Thus far, roughly 10 percent of the women who have begun the course have completed it —  a figure that is very similar, if not better, than that of the male gender.
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(Fr - 28 Dec 2014 - Vidéo) David Sebban présente le nouvel aéroport international d’Israël qui ouvrira en 2017 !

Nous sommes au Nord d’Eilat, près de Timna. Ici le futur aéroport international d’Israël verra le jour il portera le nom d’Ilan et Assaf Ramon. L’aménagement de cet aéroport n’est bien sûr, pas terminé, mais on peut déjà apercevoir les deux pistes parallèles et toutes les infrastructures nécessaires à un aéroport international.

Le coût pour le contribuable israélien, 1 milliard 700 millions de shekels, pour 30 000 mètres carrés de superficie livrable fin 2016. Il desservira la ville d’Eilat et servira de en cas de coup dur, d’aéroport supplétif au terminal  Ben Gourion près de Tel-Aviv.
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(En - 17 Dec 2014 - News) Defense Ministry zigzags over 'Arrow 3' test launch failure

 

Israel's upgraded Arrow 3 ballistic missile only partially passed its first live interception test on Tuesday, a fact the Defense Ministry attempted to conceal until questions and foreign reports surfaced stating that the test was not successful.

In a statement, the Defense Ministry initially said that "within the framework of preparations for a future interception test, a target missile was launched and carried out its trajectory successfully."

The ministry excluded the fact that as opposed to the original plan, operators of the Arrow 3 battery at Palmahim air base on the Mediterranean coast canceled the launch after the interceptor missile failed to lock on to a target missile fired over the Mediterranean.

Asked whether Tuesday's trial had been intended as a full interception that had failed, a Defense Ministry spokesman initially provided no immediate comment.

Only later did the ministry issue a statement saying that "the conditions for the interceptor launch never materialized."

"There was a countdown to the launch, and then nothing happened," one source told Reuters on condition of anonymity. "A decision was made not to waste the interceptor missile."

Arrow is among several elements of an integrated Israeli aerial shield built up to withstand potential future missile and rocket attacks by Iran, Syria or their terrorist allies, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza.

Arrow 3 interceptors are designed to fly above the earth's atmosphere, where their warheads detach to become "kill vehicles" that track and slam into the targets. Such high-altitude shoot-downs are meant to safely destroy incoming nuclear, biological or chemical missiles.

Arrow is jointly developed by state-owned Israel Aerospace Industries and U.S. firm Boeing Co. Its earlier version, Arrow 2, was deployed more than a decade ago and officials put its success rate in trials at around 90 percent.

But an Arrow 2 interception test on Sept. 9 ended inconclusively, according to the Defense Ministry. The U.S. journal Defense News later reported that the Arrow 2 interceptor missile missed its target.

A senior official in the Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure (Mafat), a joint administrative body of the Defense Ministry and IDF that coordinates between the various military industry companies and subsidiaries, spoke to reporters and said the interceptor missile was supposed to launch only if certain conditions were met. He called the decision not to launch the Arrow 3 interceptor "clear-headed."

The official added: "This isn't a success and it isn't a failure, rather a 'no-test' situation. This isn't the first or last time all the conditions for a test launch are not met."

The Defense Ministry declined to detail which conditions for a proper test launch failed to materialize. However, the senior Mafat official said the first phase of the test, which included the launch of the target missile and the tracking of its trajectory by the Arrow 3 system, was a success.

Link

(En - 12 Dec 14 - News) EL AL named noisiest airline at Heathrow

 

Israel’s national carrier, El Al, has been revealed as the noisiest at Heathrow and has received a stern warning letter from the airport’s chief executive.

The landing-noise scores, published for the period July-September 2014, shows El Al now props up the league table, replacing Polish airline LOT as west London’s worst offender.

Among the factors in which El Al received a ‘red rating’ was continuous descent approach (CDA), in which aircraft maintain a steady angle of approach when landing, rather than prolonged periods of level flight.

Quietest over the same period were the domestic and short-haul operations of British Airways, Virgin and Ireland’s Aer Lingus.

The airport’s chief executive John Holland-Kaye said he had “written to those airlines failing to meet Heathrow’s CDA standards, asking for engagement from their technical teams with the airport to increase CDA adherence”.
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(En - 12 Dec 2014 - Feedback) Four Israeli F-15s Dodged Syrian Missile Fire to Attack Urgent Targets

 

On Dec. 7, the Israeli air force carried out a series of surgical air strikes inside Syria. Such strikes are not uncommon in Syria and Lebanon—the Israelis frequently attack convoys carrying weapons to Hezbollah militants in Lebanon and to and degrade Syrian regime forces in southwestern Syria.

But the Dec. 7 strike was fairly unique. For one, much of the air raid was captured on camera. And the video and photographic evidence reveals some very interesting Israeli tactics.

 

Two formation of Israeli fighter jets, each consisting of two F-15s, entered Syrian airspace at 1600 local time from the direction of Lebanon, heading from west to east toward Damascus at very high altitude and high speed.

 

The wide spacing between the Israeli jets—both within each two-ship formation and between the two separate pairs—is noteworthy. There’s a good probable cause for this arrangement.

Israeli fighters almost definitely were using electronic jamming to prevent Syrian air defense radars from tracking them at long distance. Russian-made air defense systems, including those in Syria’s possession, include specific means of countering sophisticated enemy jamming.

In the absence of passive radars and an integrated air defense network, Syrian systems could probably still track the azimuth and elevation of incoming jamming signals via their own receivers—albeit with a considerable error margin.

 

That data could cue Syrian missile batteries’ optical sensors and allow the operators to fire toward the intruders. The spacing between the Israeli F-15s made the error margins overlap and thus made the Syrians’ direction-finding even less accurate, buying valuable time for the planes to get close to their targets.

 

At right—the F-15s’ contrails are at left. The contrails on the right are from Buk missiles. At top—Israeli air force F-15Isl

Even under heavy jamming, Syrian Buk-M2 missile batteries stationed at Mezzeh airport managed to fire two missiles toward the first formation. The Israelis responded with a simple move—they changed direction.

 

In long-distance shots, medium-range surface-to-air missiles predict a point of impact ahead of incoming aircraft and travel a ballistic trajectory to reach that point. In the last phase of flight, the missile would correct its trajectory using its seeker. A significant change in the target’s direction would mean that the missile would not find the aircraft in the predicted zone.

 

The first formation of F-15s drew the Syrian missiles toward themselves then turned toward north and released their weapons, striking a small airstrip called Al Sharai in Dimas region west of Damascus. The first formation then made a hard turn to the west and returned to Lebanese skies.

Not far behind, the second formation had already entered Syria.

The pair of F-15s approached Damascus head on—this time the Buk-M2 battery apparently waited for the intruders to change their direction or close in.

 

The Israeli F-15s released their standoff weapons and made a hard left turn toward the south. Two more Syrian missiles snaked into the sky—the contrails indicating SA-3s. These missiles weren’t aiming for Israeli jets but for the missiles they had fired.

 

One of the SA-3s hit its target. The wreckage of a Popeye guided missile fell to the ground. The Popeye is a stand-off missile with a warhead weighing 700 pounds. It uses combination of infrared imagery and inertial guidance to precisely attack targets up to 50 miles away from the launch point.

 

The wreckage of the Popeye missile.

The surviving missiles from the second pair of F-15s struck vehicles and supplies on a ramp at Damascus’ international airport.

 

It’s interesting that the Israelis used Popeyes. The Israeli air force also possesses the more modern Spice guided weapons that use a combination of GPS and laser guidance.

 

Lebanese media, including Al Menar TV, reported Israeli jets—probably a reserve force—circling over Lebanon for approximately 30 minutes after the attack, possibly waiting to attack again, if any targets survived.

 

Israeli fighters carried out a daring mission in broad daylight. The inclusion of Popeye missiles betrays the mobile nature of the targets. Whatever they were, it’s possible they were ready to leave the two airports and scatter in different directions.

 

The raid was a success for Israel, but it was also risky. An ambush by a lone missile site near the border or a few short-range missiles or guns could have turned the Israeli victory into a defeat.

(En - 17 Nov 2014 - News) Elbit will install anti-missile lasers on German Air Force planes

Elbit Systems will install its J-Music anti-missile laser protection system on German Air Force transport planes, the Israeli defense firm announced Monday.

Elbit was awarded the contract by Germany's DIEHL Defence company, and within a year, the system will be operational on new German A400M Airbus aircraft.

"Designed to protect large military and commercial aircraft against attacks by ground to air heat seeking man-portable missiles (MANPADS), the J-MUSIC systems, will be integrated into a multi-turret DIRCM (Direct Infra Red Counter-Measures) system, ensuring 360 degree protection of the aircraft," Elbit said in a statement.

"Elbit Systems has completed extensive testing of the J-MUSIC system and has already delivered systems to equip several types of aircraft to various customers," it added.

 

Bezhalel (Butzi) Machlis, President and CEO of Elbit Systems, said, “We are proud of our cooperation with DIEHL Defence on Direct Infrared Counter-Measures that has resulted in this initial contract," adding, "Our DIRCM systems provide effective protection to the growing threat of MANPADS, and we hope that additional customers will follow and select our systems as their preferred solution".

In February, the Defense Ministry and Elbit Systems announced the successful completion of a trial program to test C-Music, another Elbit laser protection system, for Israeli passenger aircraft.

The system works by detecting incoming missiles with an infrared censor, then firing a laser that disrupts the missile's navigation system, throwing it it off course, away from its intended target.

The Transportation Ministry chose C-Music to protect Israeli airliners.

The Defense Ministry's Administration for the Development of Weapons and Technological Infrastructure, the Israel Airports Authority, and Elbit Systems jointly developed the system.

"The experiments, carried out in southern Israel, were some of the most complex and sophisticated ever carried out in Israel," the Defense Ministry said at the time of the trial. "They simulated a range of threats that the C-Music system will have to deal with."

"C-Music is considered the most advanced system of its kind in the world, and will provide ultimate defense to planes," the ministry added.
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(En - 05 Nov 2014 - News) IAI inaugurates F-35 wing production line

 

Israel Aerospace Industries on Tuesday inaugurated its production line for the wings of the F-35 stealth fighter jet.

The automatic production line, in which tens of millions of dollars were invested, will build four pairs of wings per month, which will then be attached in the U.S. to the bodies of the aircraft.
Over the next decade, IAI will produce more than 800 pairs of wings, to be supplied to Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the F-35. Deliveries will begin in 2015.

Another Israeli company, Elbit Systems, will produce helmets for F-35 pilots.

Israel has bought 19 F-35s for $2.75 billion, with deliveries expected to begin in 2016, and could soon order between 25 and 31 more of the planes, according to defense sources.

At a ceremony on Tuesday to mark the opening of the wing production line, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon praised the close ties between Israel and the U.S.

"The special relationship between the United States and Israel is stronger than any disagreement," Ya'alon said. "The U.S. has given Israel extensive assistance over the years, especially in the defense field, and it helps Israel meet the challenges it faces."

Ya'alon also mentioned his recent visit to Washington.

"I felt no cold shoulder when I was in Washington," Ya'alon said, referring to recent reports that he was shunned by top Obama administration officials during his trip.

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro also spoke at Tuesday's ceremony, saying, "In today's world, with actors seeking to cause harm to both our countries, it's reassuring to know that the United States and Israel will always support each other and each other's security."

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(En - 30 Oct 2014 - News) Ya'alon cancels purchase of 6 US V-22 planes

 

Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon decided to cancel a deal with the U.S. to purchase the advanced vertical-takeoff and landing V-22 Osprey aircraft. Ya'alon's decision was not in line with the Israeli military's stance, and in Israel there is concern the decision may rouse the ire of the U.S.

Israel had agreed to purchase six V-22s, but had not yet signed the contract. The purchase would have made Israel the first country outside the U.S. to obtain the advanced aircraft. Israel was given the green light to purchase the planes in April 2013 during U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's first visit to Israel. The V-22 was part of a weapons package offered to Israel intended to upgrade its qualitative edge and also included refueling jets and radar systems.

The Israeli military supported the purchase of the V-22, which would have given it long distance transport capabilities and the ability to deploy troops deep behind enemy lines. Ya'alon supported the deal at the time as well -- which was approved again during a meeting between Ya'alon and Hagel a year ago. After flying in one, Ya'alon called the V-22 Osprey an "impressive vehicle that would provide the long arm of the IDF with unique abilities."

The defense minister's change of heart apparently is a result of financial concerns and the summer's Operation Protective Edge. Ya'alon recently decided to purchase a larger quantity of the Namer heavy armored personnel carriers and expand the IDF's precision munition arsenal. The Israeli army and air force chiefs are not expected to appeal Ya'alon's decision.

Some are concerned that, against the backdrop of rattled Israel-U.S. relations, the decision to cancel the purchase will anger the U.S. administration, and be seen as taking the offer for granted, risking future opportunities of acquiring advanced U.S. systems. Ya'alon will have to make the case to the U.S. that his decision was made objectively and based on national interests alone.

Nixing the V-22 coincided with a decision to purchase a second flight squadron of F-35 stealth fighters. All of that may be put on hold however, as the Finance Ministry has recently called for conducting a thorough analysis of Israel's defense needs following Operation Protective Edge before it signs off on any new fighter jet purchases.

The vote on purchasing the second F-35 squadron was supposed to take place on Wednesday at a Knesset ministerial committee on the acquisition of new equipment, but the meeting was delayed last minute until next week. The defense establishment believes that the committee, headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will approve the acquisition of a new flight squadron. The ongoing debate over the defense budget and the tension between members of the current coalition may lead the vote to be delayed again -- which the defense establishment says would be "an attempt by the Finance Ministry to take ownership over procedures and items which it has zero knowledge about."

Officially, all relevant parties refused to comment on the V-22 cancellation. The Defense and Finance ministries said they would make their case for purchasing or passing on a second F-35 squadron at the Knesset ministerial committee.

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(Fr - 28 Oct 2014 - Actu) Euronaval : IAI développe sa gamme de radar ELM 2022

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) étends sa gamme de radar maritime et propose deux nouveaux radars, dévoilés à l'occasion du salon naval Euronaval qui a ouvert ses portes hier à Paris.

 

-L'ELM-2022ES, basé sur la technologie AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) destiné aux avions de surveillance maritime ou de patrouille maritime, le radar peut simultanément faire de la détection de surface et aérienne, y compris de cibles de faibles dimensions.

 

-L'ELM 2022ML destiné à être mis en œuvre sur drone ou hélicoptère léger, il ne pèse que 50 k,il est destiné à des missions parapubliques.

 

IAI développe ainsi sa gamme ELM 2022, un radar déjà vendu à près de 250 unités et en service dans une vingtaine de pays, sur P-3 ou Dash-8 ou Casa.

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(Fr - 28 Oct 2014 - Actu) Air France et Israël Aerospace Industries : Un Accord sur le Taxibot.

Air France a signé un protocole d’accord portant sur l’évaluation du nouveau système Taxibot, développé par Israël Aerospace Industries (IAI) et le Groupe TLD. Ce véhicule semi-robotique est conçu pour le tractage des avions de la porte d’embarquement à la piste et vice-versa. «Son utilisation permet de réduire significativement la consommation de carburant», explique le communiqué…

La compagnie précise que «Le protocole d’accord permettra à Air France d’analyser les avantages techniques, opérationnels et financiers potentiels du Taxibot».

Les trois entreprises formeront un groupe de travail pour étudier l’impact de ce système sur le flux de tractation de gros porteurs à l’aéroport de Roissy, ainsi que les avantages du Taxibot du point de vue écologique comme les réductions de CO² et des émissions de NOx et la diminution du bruit.

 En outre, le protocole d’accord pourra être étendu à des tests de faisabilité, en coopération avec Aéroports de Paris, au deuxième trimestre 2015".
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(En - 28 Oct 2014 - News) IAF's first F-35s set for production

 

The U.S. Defense Department and Lockheed Martin have reached an agreement in principle on the production of 43 F-35 joint strike fighters, including the first two to be built for the Israeli Air Force. The deal is expected to be finalized in the coming weeks.

This will mark the eighth lot of F-35 aircraft to be produced. Production and delivery of the lot will begin in 2016.

"Today's agreement is representative of the program's ongoing maturation," F-35 Program Executive Officer, Lt. Gen. Chris Bogdan said on Monday. "Once production of LRIP 8 aircraft is completed, more than 200 F-35s will be in operation by eight nations. We are glad the government and Lockheed Martin are completing a fair and reasonable contract for the eighth lot of aircraft."

According to Lockheed Martin, the eighth lot of F-35s includes 29 U.S. aircraft (19 F-35As, six F-35Bs and four F-35Cs), the first two F-35As for Israel and the first four F-35As for Japan, as well as four F-35Bs for the United Kingdom, two F-35As for Norway and two F-35As for Italy.

In the first seven lots, 166 F-35s were contracted. As of last week, 115 F-35s have been delivered, Lockheed Martin said.

In 2010, Israel ordered 19 of the state-of-the-art stealth fighter planes at a cost of around $2.75 billion, with an option of increasing the total number to 75. 

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(En - 7 Sept 2014 - News) Canada-bound El Al plane makes emergency landing due to engine failure

 

A Toronto-bound El Al airliner returned to Ben-Gurion International Airport around a half hour after takeoff late Saturday night due to an engine malfunction.

El Al Flight 29, a Boeing 767 carrying 194 passengers, was forced to make a U-turn over the Mediterranean Sea after one of its two engines failed. An emergency situation was declared at Ben-Gurion ahead of the flight's return, with fire trucks and ambulances waiting near the runway.

The flight landed safely and passengers were transferred to another El Al aircraft, which took off for Toronto a short time later.

Link

(En - 06 Sept 2014 - History) How a Syrian nuclear facility was destroyed by the Israeli Air Force 7 years ago today

Even if Israel has never publicly admitted that some of its aircraft destroyed the facility, some details about the mission have been either disclosed or leaked throughout the years.

Some of them are well described in the book The Sword of David – The Israeli Air Force at War, written by Donald McCarthy.

According to McCarthy, who served in the U.S. Air Force from 1964 to 1968 before becoming a respected and well informed historian, the information for Operation Orchard is alleged to have come from Ali Reza Asgari, an Iranian general disappeared in February 2007, who may have been the source of the intelligence required by the Syrian nuclear site attack.
After gathering the required details, the Israelis planned a secret mission that was launched on Sept. 6 2007, at night.

At least a four F-16I Sufa (Storm) jets and another four F-15I Ra’am (Thunder) aircraft crossed the Syrian border, in bound to the nuclear plant located near the city of Dir A-Zur, in eastern Syria.
McCarthy points out the fact that Syria as well as other Arab countries were equipped with advanced Russian air defense systems, such as the Pantsir-S1 (SA-22 Greyhound as reported by NATO designation), claimed to be immune to electronic jamming. At the time of Operation Orchard, Syria operated twenty nine of these advanced air defense systems, so it remains unclear how the IAF aircraft flew undetected into the night sky out over the Mediterranean Sea, across the Euphrates River and along their route to the nuclear facility.

As explained by McCarthy, according to the most widely accepted theory the strike force included one or more Gulfstream G550 aircraft, equipped with the IAI Elta EL/W-2085 radar system.
Indeed, the success of the operation was largely attributed to effectiveness of the Israeli Electronic Warfare platforms that supported the air strike and made the Syrian radars blind: some sources believe that Operation Orchard saw the baptism of fire of the Suter airborne network system against Syrian radar systems.

This system, combined with the F-15Is electronic warfare capabilities, shut down Syrian air defense systems, providing the other airplanes the cover they needed to hit and destroy the Dir A-Zur nuclear plant.

After the attack, the initial reports stated that the IAF aircraft had almost entirely destroyed the nuclear site, claims that were also confirmed by the comparison of pre and post-attack satellite imagery.

Even if the incident was shrouded in secrecy, Turkish media outlets reported that external fuel tanks were found on the ground not far away from the Syrian border: as reported by Shlomo Aloni & Zvi Avidror in their book Hammers Israel’s Long-Range Heavy Bomber Arm: The Story of 69 Squadron, these external fuel tanks were identified by foreign press as belonging to F-15 aircraft.

Operation Orchard showed the capabilities of the Israeli Air Force, capabilities that were most probably used to carry out an air strike on a weapons convoy and military complex near Damascus, at the beginning of 2013. As done in 2007, on the night between Jan. 29 and 30, 2013, Israeli bombers entered and egressed the Syrian airspace almost completely undetected by the Syrian air defenses: a sign that Syrian radars can do nothing against Israel’s Electronic Warfare systems, most probably further improved to embed the capability to inject malware from F-16s into enemy networks.

(Fr - 6 Sept 2014 - Actu) L'Aéroport de Sde Dov (Tel Aviv) Ferme : 18 000 Logements Seront Construits Sur le Site.

Il i a quelques années, le gouvernement israélien avait décidé, pour des raisons de sécurité, la fermeture de l’aéroport de Sde Dov qui accueille des vols domestiques civils.

Les Compagnies aériennes Arkia Israel Airlines, Ayit Aviation and Tourism, Elrom Airways et Israir sont donc obligées de déménager progressivement toutes leurs opérations à l’aéroport Ben Gourion et notamment au terminal 1 qui abrite les vols domestiques.

La fermeture de Sde Dov était en discussion depuis plusieurs années, suite au développement de la mégalopole israélienne. Initialement, le plan était de déplacer l’ensemble de l’aéroport (la piste ainsi que les installations) sur une île artificielle qui aurait été construite au large des côtes. Il sera remplacé par un ensemble de plusieurs milliers d’appartements, des hôtels et des bâtiments publics.
Il est prévu de construire 18.000 logements sur le site. La suppression de Sde Dov a levé des restrictions en vigueur sur les hauteurs sur les bâtiments voisins, qui, pour des raisons de sécurité, avait été décidée
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(En - 27 Aug 2014 - News) What’s wrong with the story of Iran shooting down an Israeli stealth drone near Natanz nuclear facility

On Aug. 24, several Iranian media outlets reported the news of an Israeli drone shot down near Natanz nuclear enrichment facility in central Iran.

According to FARS, the Revolutionary Guards Public (IRGC) Relations Department said that the drone was a stealth, radar-evading  model targeted by a surface-to-air missile. Then, on Aug. 25, Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Aerospace Force Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh said that “The downed spy drone is Hermes and made in Israel.”

 

Even if the news that an Israeli drone was operating inside Iranian airspace is not a big surprise, what makes IRGC claims a bit weird is the fact that Hermes drones are not stealth and their operational range is known to be much lower than the 800 kilometers claimed by Hajizadeh (who added that the unmanned aircraft is capable of flying 1,600 kilometers without refueling). And, above all, the shape of the aircraft does not resemble that of a Hermes 180 or 450.

 

 

Indeed, the drone is identical to a mysterious drone shot down in 2011 by Armenian forces in the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh. At that time Azerbaijan denied the unmanned aircraft belonged to Baku. Then a drone of the same type, most probably made in Israel (with inputs from both the Hermes 180 and 450) was displayed during an Armenian parade as the following image shows.

 

Interestingly, the “Azeri” drone showcased in the parade (nose section has been highlighted to help identifying it in the images of wreckage) didn’t carry any national flag/roundel, unlike the other models operated by the Azerbaijani forces.

 

 

We don’t know anything about this somehow mysterious drone but its range is unlikely to make a round trip to Natanz possible from both Azerbaijan and northern Iraq (someone suggested this could be the launch area). Actually, the size of the drone is quite small, much smaller than a Hermes 450, meaning that it’s most probably a tactical, short-medium range UAV.

 

Indeed, most recent reports said that the aircraft was shot down “on the way” to Natanz. So, it seems more likely that the drone, made-in-Israel (although it’s not confirmed) and possibly launched from Azerbaijan was shot down/crashed somewhere closer to the border and then moved near Natanz

(Fr - 21 Aout 2014 - Actu) le trafic aérien, menacé par le Hamas, est très peu perturbé

Israël ne cède pas face au Hamas. En dépit des menaces, les avions décollent et atterrissent à Tel-Aviv ce jeudi. Mercredi, l'organisation palestinienne a menacé de cibler l'aéroport Ben Gourion et mis en garde les compagnies aériennes qui le desservent.

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Ce jeudi, tous les avions ont été maintenus, selon Le Figaro qui a contacté l'Autorité aéroportuaire israélienne. Le site Flightradar indique que plusieurs vols sont retardés au départ comme à l'arrivée, mais ne mentionne aucune annulation.

Les avions continuent d'atterrir et de partir de l'aéroport Ben Gourion, à Tel Aviv

Flightradar24.com

 Seule la compagnie égyptienne Air Sinaï vient d'annoncer ce jeudi l'annulation de ses vols pour aujourd'hui et vendredi en direction de Tel-Aviv, "en raison de la dégradation de la situation sécuritaire et du pilonnage à proximité de l'aéroport Ben-Gourion", selon un responsable. 

Des mesures ont toutefois été prises pour éviter que les menaces du Hamas soient efficaces, si elles sont mises à exécution: les couloirs aériens ont été déplacés vers le nord, des missiles et des forces de police ont été déployés, ajoute le journal. A quoi s'ajoute le "Dôme de fer", le système d'interception et de destruction des roquettes palestiniennes.
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(En - 21 Aug 2014 - News) The IDF’s first fully digital war

 

On July 22, a team of paratroopers, stationed in a house in Gaza, took fire from locations unknown. “There are terrorists in the area,” a radio operator on the ground said. “They are dynamic. We need you to help locate them.”

 

The pilot of an aircraft, identifying himself by the call name Tzofit, chimed in: We are above you. We can see them firing.

The pilot then presumably relayed the precise location of the gunmen to the troops, who responded by saying, to the rather surprised pilot, “The location you’re talking about, I’m inside on the second floor.”

“You’re inside the house and the terrorists are in the same house, one floor above you?” the pilot asked, on a video released by the army.

“Yes, exactly,” the infantryman said.

Moments later the pilot spotted the operatives sprinting through a date orchard and down a street. “We followed them and destroyed them,” he told the soldiers on the ground.

“If you destroyed them, then I’m relaxed, because they were firing at us,” the infantryman said.

“I know. You can be relaxed,” the pilot responded. “We’re above you.”

 

The fact that the ground troops and the air force were able to communicate, accurately locate one another, and destroy the enemy is not entirely new. The technology has existed in theory for several years. But Operation Protective Edge, the first large scale operation in which the IDF’s Digital Army Program was widely used, saw a greater interconnectivity of forces than ever before – a fact that helped thwart an array of infiltration attempts, streamlined offensive missions, and, presumably, reduced the likelihood of friendly fire.

 

Two officers from the IDF’s computers directorate, known as C4I (Command, Control, Communications, Computers and Intelligence), discussed the army’s digital trial by fire during the past month or so of warfare.

 

“The command and control systems were used to unprecedented effect,” said Maj. Moran Mayorchik, the commander of the tactical connectivity department in the IDF’s C4I Directorate.

Explaining how the systems work, she said that video and camera footage from a wide array of sources is funneled back from the field to a central core and from there streamed forward, either automatically or based on an HQ staff officer’s decision, to the appropriate commanders in the field.

The soldiers not only receive the relevant footage but can also keep track of enemy and friendly forces on a digital map. If they have questions about a certain locale, Mayorchik said, they can post queries into the system.

 

For example, Mayorchik said, a battalion commander in the field, curious to know what is happening several blocks ahead, can ask for a view of a certain intersection, if available, or for input from other troops, in the air, land or sea. “And that situational picture is common to everyone,” she said.

 

Cap. Nitzan Malka, the commander of the tactical forecasting desk at the C4I Directorate, noted the role of Radio over Internet Protocol.  Where once Special Forces troops had to carry a special radio to so much as speak with the air force on its own frequency – and other troops had to relay information back and forth through, at best, one HQ – today the frequency gap is bridged by RoIP technology.

“Take Zikim,” said Malka. During that July 8 infiltration to Israel, a large squad of Hamas frogmen swam from Gaza to Israel. Navy radars picked up the movements on the surface of the water. The warning was passed on to the military intelligence directorate’s surveillance operators along the coast. A private, manning one of the screens on the Zikim base, spotted the men emerging from the water; the video footage and the warning was delivered simultaneously to infantry troops in the vicinity and to available aircraft. Both engaged the enemy, killing the infiltrators. “There used to be islands of communication,” said Malka, where each force in the field reported back to its headquarters from its distinct vantage point. “Today it’s connected.”

 

There are dangers, though. Commanders can be overloaded with needless information, an unnecessary and possibly fatal distraction during combat. The army, reliant on reservists in a time of war, can advance to a place where reservists are unfamiliar with the new systems and lack the time to learn. And new recruits, constantly fondling electronic toys, can neglect the basics of map-reading, which can prove especially necessary during a time of technical malfunction.

Mayorchik acknowledged the dangers, but said that the advantages of knowing what lurks behind a dark corner, knowing “the color of the shirt the enemy is wearing,” creates a true “common language” between the forces in the field.  With the pace of technological advances today, she said, “the sky is the limit.”

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(En - 11 Aug 2014 - Picture) Funny picture about a meeting between USAF & IAF

(En - 07 Aug 2014 - News) Israeli Hermes drone over Gaza with dorsal satellite antenna

Taken over Gaza City on Aug. 3 by AP’s Dusan Vranic, the photo is not only extremely beautiful because of large moon (magnified by the zoom lens) in the background: it is the first to date showing a modified Israeli Hermes 450 UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) carrying the two “new” underwing pods (possibly containing SIGINT sensors or guns) with a dorsal satellite antenna.

The Israeli source who pointed us to the image said the dorsal antenna is retractable, but we are not sure it can be extended; it could be a fixed satellite antenna used for ISTAR, SIGINT, communications relay.

(En - 30 July 2014 - News) Israeli drone spotted over Gaza with new, unknown (firing?) pod

An Israeli source who wishes to remain anonymous sent us the photos you can find in this post.
They were taken on Jul. 24 and Jul. 29, over the southern Israeli Gaza border by AFP photographer Jack Guez and show an Hermes 450 drone.

Noteworthy, the Israeli UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) carries two previously unknown underwing pods. At first glance, they may resemble the two fuel tanks of the Hermes 450LE (Long Endurance) variant but a closer look shows they are not attached to a standard pylon but they are directly attached to the wing. Furthermore, the rear edge of this new pod, is aligned to the wing’s trailing edge.
According to our source, this is “a firing pod for a light missile,” possibly used to attack Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip but we are unable to verify it.

For sure the pod is something new, whose shape (loosely trapezoidal) reminds that of some gun pods carried by some warplanes. Hard to say whether it can really house a light missile or something else, even though we can’t completely rule it out.

(En - 24 July 2014 - History) Here’s how Israel managed to get three second hand B-17 Flying Fortress bombers

The B-17 Flying Fortress bombers were acquired thanks to Al Schwimmer, a World War II USAAF (United States Army Air Force) flight engineer that during the second half of 1947 purchased and delivered the surplus transport aircraft that eventually built up the Israeli Air Force Air Transport Command.

Schwimmer (the founder and first CEO of Israel Aerospace Industries) found the future Israeli bombers among the Flying Fortress aircraft already flying with the numerous start-up airlines formed after the end of WWII.

As reported by Bill Norton in his book Air War on the Edge, A History of the Israel Air Force and its aircraft since 1947, two B-17s (s/n 44-83851 and 44-83753) were acquired for 30,000 USD from Charles Winters which used them for his freight business between Florida and Puerto Rico, while two more planes were purchased from Donald H. Roberts of Tulsa. The four B-17s were legally registered, commercially modified and above all, they were airworthy airframes, meaning that they could fly on their own power all the way from the U.S. to Israel.

Planned route for the Flying Fortress was Miami to San Juan, Puerto Rico; San Juan to Santa Maria, Azores; and Azores to Zatec Czechoslovakia, for an epic 10,600 kilometer flight of at least 38 hours duration over the Atlantic Ocean and across the Iron Curtain.

The first three B-17s took off on Jun. 11, 1948 and their ferry flight was explained by David Goldberg, who was the co-pilot of one of the three bombers. Goldberg released his impressions for Wing Magazine Volume 11, February 1981. The same story was later reported also in Shlomo Aloni & Zvi Avidror book Hammers Israel’s Long-Range Heavy Bomber Arm: The Story of 69 Squadron:
“I had flown B-24s with the 15^th Air Force in Italy during the war. While making cargo runs out of Miami in the spring of 1948, I was contacted by phone and asked if I’d be interested in earning $ 1000 to ferry an airplane to Europe. I said sure. […] A few days before we were to depart I was asked if I’ d fly as co-pilot instead of pilot, since they now had found a colonel who was supposed to have had a great deal of B-17 time, and, also, his name would look better on the documents. The money was the same, so I agreed. Our flight from Miami to San Juan, Puerto Rico, was uneventful. Besides the colonel and myself we had picked up a navigator and about ten young men classified as ‘cargo handlers’.”

The rest of the ferry flight was quite a scary adventure which saw Goldberg flying the B-17 most of the time: “The colonel got roaring drunk at San Juan and stayed that way up to departure time. The next morning we have managed to pour him into the plane, and the navigator and I flew it out. From San Juan we were heading to the Azores Islands. That would take 21 hours, and we had 24 hours of fuel on board. When we were about 10 hours out the colonel was coming around to relieve me so I could get some rest. I had just fallen asleep in the back when I was awakened with a great deal of excitement and told that Cohen, the navigator, had fallen through a glassed-over section in the floor of the nose that had been put there for aerial photography. The guy was barely hanging on, and was slowly being sucked out by the slipstream. I ran back to the cockpit to get the aircraft slowed down. Col. B— had gone to pieces and was shaking like a leaf. I slowed the plane down and put it on auto-pilot and went down to help pull the navigator back in. We succeeded, but he was absolutely useless after that, and we now had to find the Azores without him.”

Incredibly Goldberg and his aircrew were able to find the Portuguese islands: “By a stroke of luck we were able to pick up the airway radio beacon from Santa Maria after 20 hours of flying – but the weather had turned bad and the ceiling was low. The island is covered with mountains, and Col. B— then announced that an instrument approach would be too risky, so he was going to ditch the plane off the coast. I said that was crazy, and that I would make the approach. He refused to get out of the left-hand seat. It was time for some drastic action. I grabbed a fire extinguisher and told him I’d crush his skull if he didn’t get out of the f—-ing seat. He left, we landed safely… And I completed the rest of the flight to Czechoslovakia alone in the cockpit!”

As already said, after reaching Santa Maria, Azores, the three B-17s were planned to fly to Zatec, Czechoslovakia, but since the American authorities were not far behind, the bombers had to move on quickly. So, with the prior consent of French officials the crews filed a flight plan for Ajaccio, Corse, but instead they landed at Zatec on June 17, where the Israeli airlift was going on in earnest.
However the American press reports had already uncovered the affair from June 16, when news circulated that several American surplus warplanes had departed from Ajaccio to Palestine: moreover, despite arrangements, the French would not confirm the arrival of the aircraft at Ajaccio and they were declared missing.

The public exposure of the three B-17s’ epic flight made the delivery of the last bomber really difficult: in fact the fourth Flying Fortress never reached Israel since, at the request of the United States, Portuguese officials impounded the aircraft indefinitely at the Azores.

However three B-17s arrived in Israel and thanks to them the Israeli Air Force was able to respond to the Egyptian bombings only two months later, when the three Flying Fortress raided Cairo: these bombers were also the first aircraft flown by the legendary 69 Squadron Hammers, that today flies another Boeing product, the powerful F-15I Ra’am (Thunder).
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(En - 23 July 2014 - News) Decision of several U.S. and European airlines to cancel all flights to Israel amid concern for the continuing rocket attacks.

Malaysia Airlines flight MH17, shot down by an SA-11 Gadfly (“Buk”) while overflying eastern Ukraine, has reminded the world that civilian planes should be kept away from war zones.

For this reason, when on Jul. 22 rockets fell close to Ben Gurion international airport, in Tel Aviv, Delta Airlines and several U.S. and European airlines decided to cancell all their flights to Israel not to jeopardize the safety of their planes.

At the time Delta decided it was not safe to fly to Israel, DL468, a Boeing 747-400 was en route from JFK to Tel Aviv. The flight was then diverted to Paris Charles De Gaulle international airport.

Along with Delta, United Airlines, American Airlines, Lufthansa, Air France, Alitalia and other airlines decided to cancel their flights to Tel Aviv, most of them for at least 24 – 36 hours, or “until further notice.”
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(Fr - 21 Juil 2014 - Actu) Selon la presse arabe, Israël aurait détruit une cache d’arme du Hamas au Soudan

« Israël a récemment fait exploser une cache d’armes au Soudan dont les armes étaient destinées au Hamas à Gaza. »  L’information a été publiée ce jour par le journal anglais en arabe Al-Arab.

Selon l’article, les autorités soudanaises pensent qu’Israël est derrière une possible frappe, mais un black-out a été imposé sur cet incident.

Le journal rapporte également que le bombardement de l’entrepôt d’armes a eu lieu quelques heures après qu’Israël ait accusé le Soudan de fournir des roquettes à longue portée au Hamas.

Une forte explosion s’est produite vendredi dernier dans un entrepôt d’armes et de matériel sur une base militaire au nord de Khartoum. « Officiellement, il s’agit d’un simple incendie. »

Selon Al-Arab, le président soudanais Omar al-Bashir a rencontré chef du Hamas Khaled Mechaal il y a deux semaines au Soudan. Les autorités soudanaises ont affirmé au journal que le black-out sur l’attaque israélienne a été conçu pour dissimuler la relation entre Khartoum et le Hamas.

Des témoins qui ont parlé au journal jurent avoir vu une forte explosion, suivi de colonnes de fumée.
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(En - 15 July 2014 - News) Israel to produce wings for F-35 stealth fighter jet

 

"The Defense Ministry's $250 million debt to Israel Aerospace Industries is burdening its activities," IAI CEO Yossi Weiss told Israel Hayom at the Farnborough Airshow on Monday. "We are slowing our pace, and even moving people between projects."

"However, this is a not a lost debt," Weiss continued. "For our part, we will continue to work and do all that is necessary, particularly given these tough times [the security situation in Israel]. We were able to produce the radar for the eighth Iron Dome battery and we are working around the clock to satisfy Israel's security needs."

Weiss revealed that IAI will open the production line for the wings of the F-35 stealth fighter jet in September. "We've invested greatly in setting up the most advanced line [of production], and we were one of the few companies in the world to receive a contract from Lockheed Martin to manufacture for it. We will produce 811 pairs of wings for the planes."

The F-35 is the talk of the Farnborough Airshow, which got underway on Monday, as the U.S. Defense Department nixed its expected appearance there. The F-35 was grounded after an engine fire on one of the planes last month. The cause of the malfunction has yet to be determined.

Lockheed Martin is still optimistic that the F-35 will appear at the air show toward the end of the week.
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(En - 14 Juil 2014 - News) IAF aborts mission to avoid civilian casualties

 

An Israeli Air Force pilot flying over the Gaza Strip on Thursday decided to abort his mission after spotting Palestinian children in the vicinity of a confirmed terror target, the Israel Defense Forces said Sunday.

 

In a video released by the IDF Spokesperson's Unit, the pilot is clearly heard telling the command center: "It looks like there are people, possibly children, in our targeted area." The response over the communication system states: "We're not going to strike this target now, let's move on."

The video's release came as foreign media reports began leveling criticism at the IDF over civilian casualties resulting from Operation Protective Edge's airstrikes on Gaza.

A senior IDF officer said that according to the military's data, some 30 percent of the casualties in Gaza are civilians. On Saturday, what the IDF described as an unusual incident occurred, in which 21 Palestinians were killed when the IAF struck the home of Hamas police chief in Gaza Tayseer al-Batsh, which was located near a mosque.

 

 

The Israeli military has gone to great lengths to minimize Palestinian casualties during the Gaza campaign. On Sunday morning, the IAF scattered thousands of leaflets over northern Gaza Strip neighborhoods, warning residents to evacuate their homes before noon. The IAF further issues warnings to residents of specific buildings identified as terror targets, warning them to evacuate before an imminent strike.

 

Hamas has repeatedly urged Gazans to ignore the Israeli warnings and remain in their homes.

The IDF reiterated Sunday that Palestinians "who ignore the warning place themselves and their families in danger."

 

Meanwhile, an opinion piece published by Business Insider magazine titled "Israel may be raising the moral standards of warfare," lauded Israel's efforts.

 

The piece, by political writer Will Saletan, originally appeared in Slate magazine, and said: "First, it's important not to get consumed by whether you love or hate Israel. ... Second, we don't need to debate the conduct of Hamas. Hamas rejects the whole idea that it's wrong to target civilians. So behaving better than Hamas isn't a standard worth talking about.

 

"Let’s focus instead on what Israel is doing," he wrote, commenting on what has been described by foreign media reports as the IDF's controversial practice of targeting terrorists' home. "The 'terrorists work from home' rationale raises ugly problems for the rules of war. Israel's warning procedures, however, could become a model."

 

According to Saletan, "In the history of warfare, this kind of systematic warning -- direct, specific, double-layered -- is unprecedented."

 

Although the article questions the consistency of the IDF's warning system, it concluded that "in some ways, Israel is raising the standards of what can be expected in warfare. Our job is to clarify those standards and hold everybody to them, including Israel."

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(Fr - 13 Juil 2014 - Actu) El Al Autorise les Changements de Dates de Billets sans Faire Payer des Suppléments.

La compagnie El al est fidèle à elle-même et a réagit très rapidement aux nouvelles données sécuritaires. Les billets d’avion achetés (tickets valables jusqu’au 18 Juillet) peuvent être modifiés sans suppléments. Par ailleurs elle fait le maximum pour éviter des retards (les avions militaires israéliens sont prioritaires et occupent l’espace).

La compagnie aérienne El Al a inauguré le premier semestre 2014 les opérations de sa filiale low cost, nommée UP, avec une liaison entre Tel Aviv et Berlin immédiatement suivie par celles vers Budapest, Prague, Kiev et Larnaca.

La nouvelle compagnie spécialisée dans le vol pas cher propose cinq destinations au départ de l’aéroport de Tel-Aviv-Ben Gurion, à bord de Boeing 737-800 configurés pour accueillir 36 passagers en classe Premium et 144 en Economie. Toutes sont desservies jusqu’à onze fois par semaine, deux fois par jour du dimanche au jeudi et une fois le vendredi (rotation du matin), aucun vol n’étant proposé le samedi, à l’exception de Larnaca qui n’est desservie que jusqu’à six fois par semaine dont le samedi.
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(Fr - 12Juil 2014 - Actu) Israël reçoit ses deux premiers M-346 Lavi

Alenia Aermacchi a annoncé hier la livraison de deux premiers M-346 à la force aérienne israélienne (IAF). Ces avions sont désormais basés sur la base de  Hatzerim dans le sud du pays. Le M-346 devrait progressivement prendre la relève des TA-4 Skyhawk dans l'arsenal militaire israélien.

Baptisé "Lavi" (lion en hébreu), le M-346 a été commandé à 30 exemplaires par Israel en 2012

En compensation de ce contrat d'une valeur totale estimée à environ un milliard de dollars, l'Italie s'était engagée en 2012 à acquérir deux avions d'alerte avancée G550 CAEW (Conformal Airborne Early Warning) auprès de l'industriel israélien IAI.

A ce jour, le M-346 a été commandé à 56 exemplaires par quatre pays : six par l'Italie, douze par Singapour, trente par Israël et huit par la Pologne.
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(Fr - 12 Juil 2014 - Actu) Le drone Skylark en première ligne

Depuis plusieurs jours les opérations militaires s'intensifient autour de la bande de Gaza. Les images des télévisions du monde entier montrent les rangées de chars lourd Merkava ou les effets des frappes aériennes conduites par les chasseurs de l'armée de l'air israélienne. Mais des moyens bien plus discrets sont devenus décisifs dans ce type d'opérations. C'est le cas du drone UAV Skylark.

Ce petit drone de sept kilos peut être porté à dos d'homme. A l'approche de la zone d'opération, le système est déployé par ses opérateurs. Le lancement est effectué par une personne à l'aide d'un système d'élastique. Une fois en l'air, le Skylark est propulsé par un moteur à hélice. Une caméra transmet en direct des images vers les opérateurs restés en lieu sûr. Selon l'armée israélienne, en vol, le système est quasi indétectable. Son autonomie annoncée est de trois heures. Son plafond est de 15 000 pieds et sa portée de 20 à 40 km.Le Skylark permet de suivre des mouvements de troupes au sol ou de préparer des tirs d'artillerie. Dans le cadre des opérations actuellement conduites par Tsahal (Armée israélienne) les drones sont déployés au dessus de la zone de Gaza. Les données recueillies par les drones légers sont directement analysées et transmises au troupes en première ligne. Le système est utile notamment en zone urbaine car il permet d'observer en détail un bâtiment.

L'utilisation de ce type de drones est devenue une constante des opérations militaires contemporaines. Des drones légers comme le Tracker d'Airbus Defense & Space sont utilisés pour éclairer les troupes au sol. La mise en oeuvre du Skylark par l'armée israélienne est caractéristique des apports du drone pour l'infanterie.
Le Skylark est développé par l'industriel israélien Elbit. Il a été choisi par plusieurs armées. Selon certaines sources il aurait été sélectionné notamment par les forces spéciales françaises.
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