Air Platforms 
A still from a video released by al-Qassam Brigades shows the view from one of the cameras fitted under the AB1's boom. Source: Al-Qassam Brigades
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced on 14 July that it has a self-produced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) called the Ababil 1.
It said it had developed three different models: the A1A for reconnaissance missions; A1B for offensive missions; and A1C for attacking suicide missions, in which the UAV is used as a loitering munition.
The announcement was accompanied by the release of a video showing what the al-Qassam Brigades said was an A1B in flight.
The aircraft has a boxy fuselage with a high-wing, twin-boom, pusher configuration and fixed, wheeled under-carriage. It carried what appeared to be two improvised rockets under each wing. While it did not appear to be fitted with an electro-optical turret, it had a camera fixed under each boom to film what is in front of the UAV.
Al-Qassam Brigades claimed its UAVs had carried out three missions on 14 July, one of them over the Ministry of Defence building in Tel Aviv, but had lost contact with aircraft involved in two of the missions.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) used its English-language Twitter feed on 14 July to announce that it had used a Patriot air defence system to shoot down a UAV over the southern city of Ashdod. Although it did not confirm that the UAV was operated by Hamas, it said it had flown in from the Gaza Strip.
COMMENT
While the Ababil 1 is the first UAV to be deployed by a Palestinian militant group, the IDF has already encountered a similar threat from the Lebanese militant group Hizbullah. The IDF has dealt with Hizbullah's UAV by intercepting them with fast jets that shoot them down with Python IV air-to-air missiles that are capable of locking on to the aircraft's comparatively small heat signatures.
It would be potentially dangerous for a fast jet to intercept a low-flying UAV close to the Gaza Strip at a time when the airspace is full of rockets flying into Israel and being met by Tamir interceptors launched by the IDF's Iron Dome batteries. The deployment of a Patriot battery to Ashdod consequently suggests the IDF had prepared for a scenario where it would have to counter UAV incursions from the Gaza Strip using ground-based air defences.
A still from a video released by al-Qassam Brigades shows the view from one of the cameras fitted under the AB1's boom. Source: Al-Qassam BrigadesThe Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced on 14 July that it has a self-produced unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) called the Ababil 1.
It said it had developed three different models: the A1A for reconnaissance missions; A1B for offensive missions; and A1C for attacking suicide missions, in which the UAV is used as a loitering munition.
The announcement was accompanied by the release of a video showing what the al-Qassam Brigades said was an A1B in flight.
The aircraft has a boxy fuselage with a high-wing, twin-boom, pusher configuration and fixed, wheeled under-carriage. It carried what appeared to be two improvised rockets under each wing. While it did not appear to be fitted with an electro-optical turret, it had a camera fixed under each boom to film what is in front of the UAV.
Al-Qassam Brigades claimed its UAVs had carried out three missions on 14 July, one of them over the Ministry of Defence building in Tel Aviv, but had lost contact with aircraft involved in two of the missions.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) used its English-language Twitter feed on 14 July to announce that it had used a Patriot air defence system to shoot down a UAV over the southern city of Ashdod. Although it did not confirm that the UAV was operated by Hamas, it said it had flown in from the Gaza Strip.
COMMENT
While the Ababil 1 is the first UAV to be deployed by a Palestinian militant group, the IDF has already encountered a similar threat from the Lebanese militant group Hizbullah. The IDF has dealt with Hizbullah's UAV by intercepting them with fast jets that shoot them down with Python IV air-to-air missiles that are capable of locking on to the aircraft's comparatively small heat signatures.
It would be potentially dangerous for a fast jet to intercept a low-flying UAV close to the Gaza Strip at a time when the airspace is full of rockets flying into Israel and being met by Tamir interceptors launched by the IDF's Iron Dome batteries. The deployment of a Patriot battery to Ashdod consequently suggests the IDF had prepared for a scenario where it would have to counter UAV incursions from the Gaza Strip using ground-based air defences.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar
Catatan: Hanya anggota dari blog ini yang dapat mengirim komentar.