Spain will deploy two new types of UAS in Afghanistan during 2012, for a total of six aircraft.
The IAI Searcher MKII and III aircraft have been deployed since March of 2008 exclusively at the Forward Support Base of Herat, but from now on Spain will also have a ground control system in Qala i Ship, capital of the province of Badghis.
This will enable observers “to reach all of the northern part of the western regional command”, according to local commanders. With the international withdrawal planned for 2014, these aircraft mean that the physical presence on land can be reduced. They are utilized for intelligence work and take over the work of land-based units, since they are fitted with three cameras (two daylight and one night-time) that relay images in real time.
One of the main Spanish objectives for these last months of the mission is to finish work on the Lithium Road that connects Qala i Ship with Bullet Murghab, the most populous city of the province of Badghis.
Source: ABC Spain