MALE UAV Offered to French, Spanish Militaries

France’s Thales and Dassault Aviation and Spain’s Indra have teamed to offer a Medium-Altitude Long-Endurance (MALE) UAV to the French and Spanish ministries of defense. The solution is based on the Heron TP UAV developed by Israel Aerospace Industries. The first system could be operational by late 2012, the companies said. “This pragmatic and competitive offer would match the operational needs of both countries, and allow the supply to both armed forces of long endurance UAVs for theatre surveillance within a very short timeframe,” the companies said.