Rheinmetall is proposing the Heron TP (TP = turboprop) in response to the Bundeswehr’s requirement for a follow-on solution for the Heron 1 reconnaissance system, to start in 2013. An advanced version of the Heron 1, the Heron TP is ready to go into operation immediately.
With a wingspan of 26 metres and a maximum take-off weight of 5,000 kilos, this 14-metre-long UAV can carry a payload of up to 1,000 kilos. Its engine output is approximately 900 KW (around 1,200 horsepower). It has an operating ceiling of 45,000 feet (14,800 metre), higher than that of a civilian aircraft. Moreover, the Heron TP can operate in all weathers and climate zones, and be airlifted into any area of operations in an Airbus A 400 M military transport plane. The system can remain in the air for over 36 hours.
Today the Heron TP already meets the full range of requirements for a future MALE reconnaissance system. To a large extent, the system will be modified and produced in Germany, meaning that it will make a major contribution to national know-how in this field.
SAATEG INTERMEDIATE SOLUTION – HERON 1
Under its SAATEG programme, which stands for “Systems zur Abbildenden Aufklärung in der Tiefe des Einsatzgebietes” or “Systems for imagery reconnaissance deep in the area of operations”, the Bundeswehr is cooperating closely with Rheinmetall Defence of Germany and its partner company Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd. (IAI). Under a service contract with the Bundeswehr, Rheinmetall and IAI have been operating the highly advanced Heron 1 reconnaissance system in Afghanistan since March 2010. An interim SAATEG solution, it decisively enhances the Bundeswehr’s intelligence gathering and reconnaissance capabilities in Afghanistan. It is the first unmanned aircraft ever to operate under the aegis of the German Air Force.
Rheinmetall partner IAI supplies the system, the Heron 1, which is already operated by other allied nations in Afghanistan. This unmanned asset is a medium-altitude long endurance (MALE) aircraft that can operate around the clock, around the world in almost all weathers. Equipped with state-of-the-art imaging sensors, the Heron 1 forms an integral part of the C4I loop, transmitting imagery in real time and making it perfect for surveillance and reconnaissance missions, identification and acquisition of stationary and moving targets and post-strike evaluation. Thanks to its satellite data link, the Heron 1 is able to transmit full motion video information over long distances, while its imaging radar produces excellent reconnaissance results in real time even in conditions of poor visibility.
A typical SAATEG mission lasts 16 hours, though it has also operated for up to 27 hours at a stretch. To date, the SAATEG interim solution has flown over 4,000 hours in Afghanistan, including 600 in May 2011 alone – over a hundred more than contractually agreed, representing an average of twenty hours a day. At the end of May, the German Air Force’s top-ranking general declared the Heron 1 squadron based in Mazar-e-Sharif to be fully operational.
In order to operate the system for the German Air Force according to contract and to assure round-the-clock support services, Rheinmetall made some 40 qualified aircraft mechanics and pilots available, arranging for them to be trained – together with German Air Force personnel assigned to the mission – at IAI in Israel to operate and maintain the new system. The Heron systems also had to be built and transported to Afghanistan during this period.
Given its positive experience with the system, the Bundeswehr opted to extend the original one-year service contract for a further two years.
Source: Press Release