Israel is one of the world leaders in the field of unmanned aircraft, including in the direction of the so-called. loitering ammunition. Many types of products are produced for our army and for foreign customers, including several kamikaze drones of the IAI Harpy family. The first sample of this line was created in the late eighties, and in the future several new developments appeared. The last member of the family was first shown just a few days ago.
IAI Harpy
According to known data, the development of the first Israeli loitering ammunition started in the second half of the eighties. Developing the concepts of UAVs and cruise missiles, Israel Aerospace Industries came up with the idea of a drone with its own warhead, capable of both reconnaissance and striking targets by direct collision. Such proposals were implemented in the Harpy project. It should be noted that this was one of the first projects of this kind in the world. In this regard, the authorship of the idea of a kamikaze drone is often attributed to Israel, although similar products were created in other countries.
IAI Harpy is the first member of the future family
The Harpy product was intended to combat enemy air defenses, which determined its appearance. The UAV is built according to the "flying wing" scheme with a prominent cylindrical fuselage. In the tail section of the vehicle there is an internal combustion engine UEL AR731 with a capacity of 37 hp. with a pushing screw. Provided for the installation of a 32-kg high-explosive warhead. "Harpy" was equipped with a passive radar homing head and an autopilot.
The length of the apparatus reached 2.7 m, the wingspan was 2.1 m. The maximum weight was 125 kg. The propeller-driven group provided a speed of up to 185 km / h with a flight range of 500 km. The takeoff was carried out from a ground-based launcher from a container.
UAV IAI Harpy was supposed to take off from a catapult and, under the control of the autopilot, go to the specified area. There, a radar seeker was included in the work, the task of which was to search for an enemy air defense radar. When the desired signal was found, the kamikaze drone would automatically aim at its source. Unlike existing anti-radar missiles, the Harpy could stay in the desired area for several hours and wait for the target signal to appear.
The first customer for the Harpy system was the Israel Defense Forces. In 1994, a contract appeared for the supply of such weapons to China. In the future, drones entered service with several more foreign countries. In 2004, the Chinese contract became a topic of international controversy. The PRC army ordered IAI to modernize the remaining drones in stock, which drew criticism from the United States. Israel in response recalled the origin of the project and noted the absence of American components in it. The Chinese Harpies have gone through the required upgrade.
IAI Harop
For all its positive qualities, the Harpy product had a major problem. In the basic version, it could only fight against enemy radars, finding them by the emitted signal. In this regard, at the beginning of the two thousandth, the development of an upgraded version of the UAV called Hapry 2 began; later the name IAI Harop appeared. This time it was about a full-fledged multipurpose drone with a weapon function.
UAV Harop / Harpy 2 at the exhibition
For Harop, a new glider was developed with a forward horizontal tail, keels and a different wing. Fuselage contours and overall dimensions have also changed. A gyro-stabilized platform with an optoelectronic reconnaissance system was placed under the enlarged nose of the vehicle. In the tail, between the keels, an engine cover with a pusher propeller appeared. The electronics have undergone a major overhaul in order to obtain new functions. A high-explosive charge weighing 23 kg was placed inside the glider.
The length of the "Harpy-2" was reduced to 2.5 m, while the wingspan was increased to 3 m. Weight - 135 kg. The maximum speed remained at the level of its predecessor, but the range increased to 1000 km. Due to this, patrols lasting up to 6 hours were provided. The launch is carried out from the transport and launch container using a solid propellant engine. The return of the apparatus to the base is envisaged at the command of the operator. The operator of the complex could recall the drone even while diving to the target.
Harop testing began in 2003, and a few years later it entered service with the IDF. The developer company published various data, but the first public display of the device took place only in 2009. By this time, orders from third countries were already being fulfilled. Thus, India became the first foreign buyer. Currently, it is armed with more than a hundred drones, renamed P-4.
Start of the Harop drone
At the beginning of April 2016, the first cases of the IAI Harop's combat use took place. During the next aggravation of the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Azerbaijani army used kamikaze drones to attack transport and stationary targets of the enemy. According to known data, the next successful attack using Harpy 2 occurred in May last year. With the help of such a device, the IDF destroyed the Syrian Pantsir-S1 anti-aircraft system. It should be recalled that during the attack, the complex did not function and did not have ammunition.
IAI Harpy NG
In 2016, Israel Aerospace Industries presented a new project of the Harpy family for the first time. At one of the international exhibitions, materials on the Harpy NG (New Generation) loitering ammunition were shown. As follows from the published data, the developer company made a "hybrid" of the two previous aircraft with limited capabilities, but with sufficiently high performance.
Harpy NG was built on the basis of the Harop UAV airframe. The main part of its units has been preserved, but some have been removed as unnecessary. So, the shape and equipment of the nose of the fuselage have changed. The "NG" product does not have an optoelectronic system, and the head compartment is given over to a passive radar seeker. The power plant remains the same, the avionics has been redesigned in accordance with the new tasks. Maximum unification with the previous model made it possible to keep the dimensions and weight at the same level.
The kamikaze drone is a means to combat enemy radar stations. Basically, this is about porting the functionality of an older Harpy product to the more advanced Harop platform. This made it possible in a known manner to improve the flight performance, and with them the combat effectiveness.
UAV IAI Harpy NG with guidance to sources of radar radiation
According to reports, IAI Harpy NG vehicles are in service only in Israel. There is no information on purchases of such systems by foreign countries. It is quite possible that in the future the “new generation” will find foreign customers, primarily among countries that have already mastered the previous models of the family.
IAI Mini Harpy
Just a few days ago at the Aero India 2019 exhibition, the Israeli company IAI for the first time presented a new loitering ammunition of the Harpy family. Another development was called Mini Harpy, which reveals the main provisions of the project. In terms of its functions, the "Mini-Harpy" is no different from its predecessors. At the same time, a new airframe and updated equipment are used. Due to their use, it was possible to significantly reduce the dimensions and weight of the product.
The new glider is built according to the normal aerodynamic design and has a large elongation fuselage with a close-to-rectangular cross-section. An L-shaped tail unit is attached to the tapering tail section of the vehicle. Above provides for the installation of a straight wing with ridges at the tips. In the transport position, the wing is laid along the fuselage, when exiting the TPK, it is deployed to the operating position. The propulsion system uses a pusher propeller again.
In the new project IAI combined all previously used surveillance tools. Mini Harpy carries an optoelectronic unit and an electronic reconnaissance system, which allows you to identify and attack any targets, including enemy radar. Control is carried out from the operator's console, while some of the tasks are assigned to automation.
The newest Mini Harpy - so far in the form of a three-dimensional model from a commercial
The kamikaze drone has a length and a wingspan of about 2. The launch weight is 45 kg. The combat load is made in the form of a high-explosive shaped charge weighing 8 kg. The device is capable of operating at distances of up to 100 km from the operator, the fuel supply provides loitering for 2 hours.
The exact stage of work on Mini Hapry is currently unknown. Some assumptions can be made on the basis of the fact that so far the project has to be advertised with the help of a video clip with computer graphics and without actual filming. It should be noted that the commercial for the project has already made a lot of noise. The fact is that one of the targets of the UAV from the video was a certain radar, suspiciously similar to a component of the Russian anti-aircraft missile system. The drawn "Mini-harpy" easily coped with such a goal, for which she immediately received the nickname "S-300 Killer" from the press.
Representatives of the developer company talk about the high combat and commercial potential of the new loitering ammunition. At the same time, they do not yet mention real contracts for the supply of such products. Perhaps the IAI Mini Harpy drone is not yet ready for delivery, and its creators are only presenting their new development to potential buyers, wishing to interest them.
Large family
To date, Israel Aerospace Industries has developed and introduced to the international arms market four loitering ammunition of the Harpy family. It should be noted that this line is not the only one in the IAI product catalog. There are several other developments of the same class, with certain differences from the "Harpies". Apparently, the Israeli industry will not stop there and will continue to develop the idea of kamikaze drones.
"Mini-harpy" falls on the target
The development paths of the Harpy family, which resulted in the current state of affairs, are of great interest. The first sample of the family was inherently a special type of anti-radar missile. Unlike other products of a similar purpose, the IAI Harpy UAV could patrol an area and wait for a target to appear, and then attack it. In the future, the idea of patrolling was developed, and full-fledged reconnaissance and strike systems appeared. The last sample of the family is capable of conducting reconnaissance by various methods. Thus, over several decades, the Harpy line has come a long way and now includes a number of samples with different characteristics and capabilities.
Back in the early nineties, the first product of the family was brought to the market, and soon foreign orders appeared. In the future, foreign states also acquired new samples of the family. Now IAI is awaiting orders for new weapons.
The stable appearance of contracts and interest from new buyers demonstrate the high commercial potential of both the Israeli "Harpies" and the entire direction of loitering ammunition. The facts of the successful combat use of kamikaze drones stir up the interest of potential buyers - both in Israeli products and in the developments of other countries. In addition, the Harpy family shows commercial prospects for such systems, which leads to the start of foreign projects.
Israel is considered one of the creators of the concept of loitering munitions, and it was the Israeli project IAI Harpy that was the first product of its kind to enter service and enter the international market. Israel Aerospace Industries continues to work on this topic and presents new samples, including those from the Harpy family. The latest development of this kind was first shown just a few days ago.
