[Display: Getty Images # 96923743
Caption: Israel Aerospace Industries’ Eitan, or Heron TP]
Israel: A New Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
[Teaser:] Israel has unveiled a new unmanned aerial vehicle that can reach Iran, but it does not fundamentally enhanceIsrael’s ability to strike Iranian nuclear facilities.
Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has announced that its “Eitan”(or Heron TP) medium- altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is ready for serial production. Much has been made in the media [in recent weeks? months?] about the UAV’s ability to “reach”Iran. With 24- to 36-hour endurance and the ability to operate above 40,000 feet, the Eitan certainly provides a noteworthy new capability for Israel. But the UAV is something IAI has long been capable of designing and producing,and it does not materially alter Israel’s ability to strike Iran.
Though the Eitan can certainly reach Iran by flying through Iraqi airspace, this most direct route is also the most politically sensitive, since it would likely upset the <link nid="153773">delicate balance of power</link> the United States is trying to help create with elections on March 7. And comparable in size, payload and performance to the U.S. MQ-9 Reaper, an enlarged version of the venerable Predator, the Eitan likely does not have the capability to fly around the Arabian Peninsula, reach Iran and returnto Israel.
In any event, the real issue is that the airframe, like the Reaper, is designed principally for long-range intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR). Though it can be fitted with external stores (weapons and fuel tanks), its payload capacity is 2,000 pounds, including targeting and surveillance hardware. While there is little doubt the Eitan can be fitted with Hellfire missiles and perhaps even configured to carry 500-pound bombs, Israel's challenge is delivering 5,000-pound bunker-busters to Iran in order to <link nid="145068">damage key nuclear facilities</link>. Another challenge for Israel is sustaining an air campaign at that distance over a week’s time when political circumstances and Iranian reprisals could limit Israel to much less.
More ISR capability is always a good thing when it comes to air campaigns, and the Eilat[Eitan?] is perfect for conducting battle damage assessments. This would be an important complement in an Israeli air strike against Iran’s nuclear sites-- once the new UAV is produced in numbers --but it does not change the fundamental challenges Israel faces in carrying out such a strike.
RELATED LINKS