Undisclosed customer buys Hermes 900 UAS with surveillance payloads
A Hermes 900 UAS with a SkEye Wide Area Persistent Surveillance system payload. (Photo: Elbit)
Elbit Systems has been awarded a $72 million contract to supply Hermes 900 UAS to an undisclosed international customer.
The contract will be carried out over two years and includes training capabilities.
Under the deal, Elbit will supply Hermes 900 UAS with the SkEye Wide Area Persistent Surveillance system, SPECTRO XR multi-spectral electro-optical payload, SATCOM and signals intelligence (SIGINT) payloads.
Elbit Systems’ Yoram Shmuely said the contract was another vote of confidence in the Hermes UAS family.
In September, the Royal Thai Navy (RTN) officially ordered the Hermes 900 Maritime UAS from Elbit to meet its MALE UAV requirements for blue water and coastal missions.
Related Equipment in Defence Insight
More from Air Warfare
-
V-22 Osprey safety upgrade moves towards wider fleet installation under $35.5 million deal
Bell Boeing will supply 73 additional ODSSHI kits as NAVAIR prepares to introduce predictive drive-system monitoring across US and Japanese V-22 fleets.
-
AFA 2026: US Air Force examines uncrewed cargo aircraft for contested logistics
The US Air Force is evaluating demonstrators for uncrewed cargo missions as it considers logistics requirements across the Pacific and other contested environments.
-
Germany air focus: Europe’s leading near-term air market targets domestic industry
Between 2026 and 2032, almost a quarter of EU aircraft spending is expected to come from Germany. While crewed programmes seek modernisation and replacement, uncrewed opportunities look to introduce entirely new capabilities, with both highlighting sovereignty and domestic production.
-
Europe risks losing control of CUAS production capacity as manufacturers look abroad
European counter-drone developers are securing early orders in the Middle East while slow domestic acquisition processes threaten to redirect production capacity, expertise and investment away from Europe.
-
India’s rotary-wing capability gap grows as IMRH programme delays persist
With IMRH and DBMRH potentially years from service, India faces a widening rotary-wing capability gap that could drive further foreign purchases even as HAL and Safran build the foundations of an indigenous successor.