Spark Up the Skies

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) are an essential part of modern military operations, with armed forces across the globe using them for a wide range of missions including intelligence gathering, border surveillance, combat support and more. As battlefields become more sophisticated and complex, UAS are regularly enhanced with new capabilities.

While development efforts have largely centered on Class I (under 150 KG) and Class III (over 600 KG, usually more than one ton) drones, Elbit Systems’ Aerospace division is pioneering a unique approach within the tactical category.

Meet the Hermes™ 650 Spark, a tactical UAV with Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance (MALE) performance, representing a significant advancement in the UAS field.

Crafted to be the future successor to the renowned Hermes™ 450 (also known as the IDF “Zik”), the new UAS is ready to mark a significant leap in multi-domain warfare. Its designers anticipate it will provide advantages in air, land, and sea operations alike.

More With Less

With an operational client already testing this unique new platform, the team at Elbit Systems’ Aerospace division is keen to discuss their somewhat unconventional choice to focus on the middle UAS category.

“By embracing a significant degree of creativity and ingenuity, we decided to break away from the norm with the development of the Hermes™ 650 Spark,” stated Amir, Vice President of Business Development and Marketing for the UAV Business Unit.

Calling the Spark “an exceptionally advanced UAV, unique to our company,” Amir added that Elbit Systems “believes that it will continue to be a leading technology in the industry for years to come.”

The lessons learned from the conflict in Ukraine and other recent global campaigns underline the drawbacks of deploying heavy, expensive drones that also carry significant risks. Conversely, Elbit Systems’ Hermes™ 650 offers a swift and cost-effective tactical alternative for achieving the same objectives.

“This advanced platform features rapid deployment with short turn-around time between flights and highly automatic pre-flight inspection, wide range of flight speeds, versatile sensor capabilities, minimal technical crew and support equipment displaying unmatched cost-effectiveness,” Amir said. “The Hermes™ 650 embodies an innovative approach, integrating lessons learned into a novel market category.”

Key Features

What sets the brand-new Hermes™ model apart from others in its class? The Aerospace division’s designers understood the critical need for rapid deployment to a designated area. As a result, they outfitted the new model with automatic taxi and take-off and landing (ATOL) capabilities from short runways, and other characteristics that makes it fit for Army, Air Force and Navy users.

“The model’s infrastructure is designed for compatibility with multiple payloads at the same time, up to 260 kg of it mounted in its modular payload bay, a very successful concept adopted from the Hermes™ 900,” Amir elaborated. “This includes everything from high-quality electro-optics and radar to signal intelligence (SIGINT) capabilities.”

The Spark model boasts advanced avionics and infrastructure that easily accommodate future advancements, such as 5G networking, analytics, and smart digital maintenance. With an impressive endurance it can remain operational for up to 24 hours, offering Line-of-Sight (LOS) capabilities of up to 300km and BLOS (Beyond Line-of-Sight) SATCOM capabilities. These attributes make it highly versatile for various mission scenarios, positioning the Hermes™ 650 Spark model as a forward-looking and adaptable solution.

To achieve maximum performance, Elbit Systems selected a more powerful engine than typically used and the placement of the engine at the front mirrors the design of other high-performance aircraft.

“This engine is remarkably powerful for its use in a tactical UAV,” noted Amir.

A Proud Successor

Given all these advantages, the Hermes™ 650 Spark is poised to become one of the most sought-after UAS platforms in modern military forces.

“The Hermes™ 450 has been the leading tactical UAV in its class worldwide for years, establishing it as a dominant force in the industry,” he concluded. “Our steadfast belief in this category underscores our view of its importance over the next 30 years with the new Hermes™ 650 model. It truly represents the future trajectory of UAS technology as we understand it.”

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