UAV round-upIsrael Aircraft Industries to launch new missile-hunting UAV
With a wingspan of 110 feet, the Eitan UAV is designed for high altitide, long-haul flights; attached cameras and missiles intended to stop ballistic missiles on the launching pad; trial flights begin this week
If Goldilocks was looking for an unmanned aerial vehicle, no doubt she would want the largest one first, so we hope Israel Aircraft Industries will forgive us if we nickname their new Eitan UAV the “Papa Bear” of the industry. Purported to be one the largest in the industry, the Eitan boasts a wingspan of a 110 feet/33.5 meters (comparable to a Boeing 737) and is to be used for high altitude, long-range missions to destroy ballistic missiles as they are being launched. (Got that, Iran?) According to Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot, the drone is scheduled to make its trial flights in the next few days.
The Eitan is big, no doubt, but there are a few larger ones. Northrop Grumman’s RQ-8B Global Hawk, the largest currently in series production, boasts a span of 39.6 meters, while the RQ-4A version — now in final assembly — has a span of 35.3 meters. According to Flight Global, the largest historical UAV was the Aerovironment Helios, which had a span of 83.5 meters, with second place held by Boeing’s Boeing Condor, with a 60.9 meter span. Aerovironment’s Pathfinder Plus aircraft, now retired, also had a span of 36.9 meters.
-read more in Komfie Manalo’s All Headline News report
