Heron-2 MALE-UAV & Its Archer-NG Clone Explained

Although Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) had been offering its Super Heron HF MALE-UAV to India since 2015 (it even brought this UAV to the Aero India 2015 and 2017 expos in Bengaluru), both the Indian Army (IA) and Indian Air Force (IAF) opted for the less capable Heron-2 MALE-UAS in January 2021, when IAI announced on 25 January that it had inked two contracts comprising one lease and one sale of its Heron-2s. The systems included four Heron-2s and their related ground-control stations purchased by the IAF and four Heron-2s and related ground-control stations leased by the IA.

The Heron-2 retains the same dimensions and general performance specifications as the earlier Heron-1, with improvements including SATCOM data-linking that allows beyond-line-of-sight command-n-control of the MALE-UAV out to a distance of 1,000km, and a widened fuselage pod for a greater number of sensors and/or more powerful mission avionics and small-diameter precision-guided munitions (SD-PGM).

It also boasts a new propulsion configuration comprising the fully certified Rotax-915iS 1,352cc turbocharged four-stroke engine, which has a time-before-overhaul (TBO) rating of 1,200 hours and which produces up to 135hp at maximum continuous power (offering a cruise speed of 277kph) while coupled to a three-bladed variable-pitch pusher propeller, compared to 115hp of the Rotax-914 engine on the older Heron-1.

The Super Heron HF, on the other hand, is powered by an Austro-330EP 177hp engine that allows the MALE-UAV to attain a service ceiling of more than 30,000 feet and reach a speed of 150 Knots. The most important update, however, and the main driver behind development of the Super Heron HF, is the adoption of a heavy-fuel (diesel) engine. Heavy-fuel engines offer a number of benefits to the user. Maintenance requirements are reduced, and the fuel offers significant commonality with many other battlefield systems. Primarily, though, it is a much safer liquid to transport in the support of field deployments.

IAI evaluated four different heavy-fuel engine types for the Super Heron HF before adopting a DieselJet FIAT engine from Italy that develops 200hp. The extra power compared to the original engine not only helps to overcome a rise in maximum takeoff weight from 1,250kg to 1,450kg, as well as improving rate of climb. At 30,000 feet and 45 hours, service ceiling and endurance are the same as for the Heron-1. The Super Heron HF has triple-redundant avionics installed, and greatly expanded flexibility for new payloads and smarter interfaces. The aircraft comes with an impressive array of sensors, including the MOSP-3000-HD optronics turret with laser rangefinder/designator and ELM-2055D SAR/GMTI radar. Antennae and pods for various electronic warfare and intelligence-gathering systems are also available.

In late September 2022, as part of its ISR capability enhancement in Arunachal Pradesh beyond the Tawang sector, the IA began deploying two of its leased Heron-2s at the IAF’s Missamari AFS, and at Leh AFS in Ladakh.

In a separate tri-services endeavour, known as ‘Project Cheetah’, about 70 existing Heron-1s belonging to the IA, IAF and Indian Navy (IN) will be jointly upgraded to Heron-2 configuration by IAI and the MoD-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and will be known as the Archer-NG.

However, this MALE-UAV variant will be powered by a 177hp Austro-330EP diesel engine and will contain flight and mission avionics that were originally developed by the DRDO’s LRDE and DARE laboratories for the ADE-developed Tapas-BH MALE-UAV.