An international exhibition in the coastal city of Rishon Lezion on Tuesday gave guests a glimpse into the impressive present and future capabilities of Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles.
Video credit: Kobi Meiri
The exhibition was Israel's first International Convention and Expo on Autonomous Unmanned Systems and Robotics, and was organized by i-HLS, a media company dealing exclusively with Israeli homeland security. It hosted 25 local security companies, including Israel Aerospace Industries and Controp. Representatives from some 60 companies, armies and air forces around the world joined 2,000 Israeli professionals at the convention. "In the last 10 years, creation and investment in unmanned aircraft in the United States has gone up between 150 and 200 percent," said former Israeli Air Force Commander Maj. Gen. (res.) Eitan Ben Eliyahu at the exhibition's opening lecture. "The future lies in unmanned systems. The era of attack helicopters is over, the future of fighter plans is uncertain, but transport aircraft will survive," he added. IAI's Harop combat suicide UAV, which self-destructs upon reaching its target, drew special attention on the exhibition floor. The drone, a second generation of the Harpy model, is designed to attack missile batteries and can fly for six hours and reach targets up to 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) away. The drone, first introduced in 2009 and supplied to the Indian army, is designed to roam the skies until finding its target, which it descends upon and explodes. "We will turn this exhibition into an annual event," promised Guy Keren, CEO of i-HLS. "And already next year, international presenters will arrive with surprising displays."
