More Images of Bird-Like UAS Found in Iraq and Pakistan

In August 2011, photos emerged of a bird-like unmanned aircraft that went down because of a technical fault just inside Pakistani territory in Chaman town, in insurgency-hit Baluchistan province.

An official from Pakistan’s paramilitary Frontier Corps in Quetta, Baluchistan province’s main town, confirmed the incident. “Some spare parts and a camera were also found with it,” the official said. “It crashed near a Frontier Corps fort in Chaman but caused no damage.”

Although initially believed to be a sort of home made job, a more in-depth analysis of the images taken at the crash site, showed that the unusual, never seen before robot, was quite sophisticated: the aircraft had flapping wings, ailerons and a belly camera to spy on insurgents along the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.

What nobody knew at that time was that the (American) mystery bird  was far from being new, as it had already been used in Iraq.

A reader of The Aviationist recently sent in an email to explain that the same weird UAS downed in Pakistan had been captured by the Iraqi Hezbollah near al-Bashra, in Iraq, on May 23, 2009.

When the few images of the bird spread online someone speculated it could just have been a DIY rc model made by soldiers with their equipment or a low-cost UAS assembled by China or India to satisfy their insatiable need to spy.

The fact that it was probably already flying in Iraq two years before crashing in Pakistan, suggests that the bird-like UAS may not be a toy but a small combat proven spy UAS.

Source: The Aviationist