The Aerostar Tactical UAS (TUAS), is one of the most efficient and cost-effective Unmanned Arial Vehicle (UAV) of its class.

According to the manufacturer to date, Aerostar has logged more than 250,000 operational flight hours missions worldwide and has been operating in 4 continents. It is one of six models of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles  produced by the Israeli company Aeronautics.

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Technical characteristics

The system consists of the ground control station and the UAV. The technical characteristics of the UAV are: 

• Wingspan: 8.7 meters
• Length: 4.5 meters
• Height: 1.2 meters
• Max. Take Off Weight: 230 kg
• Max. Payload Weight: 50 kg (for intelligence gathering, surveillance, targeting)
• Max. Endurance: Up to 12 hours
• Max. Flight speed: 110 kt
• Range: Line of Sight (LOS) Up to 250 km
• Service Ceiling: Up to 18 thousand feet

The Aerostar is equipped with a large payload bay, and carries several types of payloads, including advanced, stabilized EO/ IR sensors, laser designation, Synthetic Aperture Radars (SAR)\GMTI, various electronic intelligence sensors (COMINT, ELIINT) and other advanced payloads. This capability is accommodated through the flexible control architecture.

This model has been in the arsenal of the National Guard since 2019. The purchase of the four UAVs cost the Republic of Cyprus 12 million euros. In addition to operational utilization in the Armed Forces (intelligence collection, targeting acquisition, etc.) it can effectively assist in the monitoring of the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and during search and rescue missions within the Nicosia FIR.

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