Israel’s Elbit Systems Launches New Hermes 650 Spark UAS

Israeli defense technology firm Elbit Systems has recently unveiled its latest addition to the Hermes family, the Hermes 650 Spark, a tactical Unmanned Aerial System (UAS). This Next Generation UAS is designed to meet the changing demands of the aerospace and defense industries, providing enhanced endurance, versatility, and cost-effective performance across land, air, and sea operations.

Key features of the Hermes 650 Spark include autonomous operation, a wide flight envelope, high payload capacity, and minimum life cycle cost. The UAS adheres to NATO STANAG 4671 standards, ensuring safety, survivability, and immunity standards. It is engineered for increased range (Beyond Line of Sight), flight speed, and operational efficiency, the company said Tuesday.

As the latest addition to the Hermes family, the Hermes 650 Spark is equipped with Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) capabilities, offering notable payload capacity along with extended range, flight speed, endurance, and operational efficiency.

The autonomous and digital UAS is designed to fulfill various operational requirements across Air, Land, Sea, Homeland Security (HLS), and civilian applications. It allows diverse payload configurations without compromising flight endurance, emphasizing the minimization of Life Cycle Cost (LCC) for cost-effective mission performance. The UAS adheres to safety, survivability, and immunity standards, supported by contemporary autonomous and predictive maintenance practices to reduce the Life Cycle Cost.

The operational capabilities of the Hermes 650 Spark include versatility and dependability in medium altitude long endurance aerial missions. It features automatic takeoff and landing (ATOL) and auto-taxi capability on short runways. With a useful load of 260kg, the UAS accommodates eight modular storage stations, providing ample space in the fuselage for large payload bays and six hard points on the wings. This configuration enables it to carry payloads up to 120kg on full fuel capacity without compromising flight endurance.

The system's multi-payload capability integrates electro-optics (EO), radar, SIGINT, and other functionalities, allowing simultaneous execution of extended missions within SATCOM range with an endurance lasting up to 24 hours. The Hermes 650 Spark represents a notable advancement in UAS technology, meeting the demands of modern defense and aerospace operations.