Solution services for maritime surveillance

OPERATIONAL REFERENCE

The Heron 1 is a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) uncrewed aerial system operated for Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. Produced by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) and customized by Airbus, the system meets the requirements of the agency for maritime surveillance services over the Central and Eastern Mediterranean Sea. The main task of the UAS is to support border control as well as search and rescue operations. 

Heron 1 Frontex Crete
Heron 1 Frontex Crete
Heron 1 Frontex Crete

Delivering persistent reconnaissance capability

Operational Role

The full turnkey solution services with the Heron 1 are being delivered from Malta and Greece as specific contracts on pre-planned assignments as well as for ad-hoc calls. The Heron UAS is fitted with versatile payloads (electro-optical for day and infrared for night purposes as well as a powerful maritime patrol radar including automatic identification system) for both line-of-sight (LOS) and beyond line-of-sight (BLOS) operations. The information received by the UAS is transmitted in real time to the Frontex Headquarters as well as to the respective coast guards.

With endurance exceeding 24 hours, the system delivers long-duration ISR coverage for maritime missions

Airbus is proud in providing an essential commitment to the monitoring and security of European external borders and hence ensuring a strong contribution for the stability in Europe.

Heron 1 Frontex Malta
Heron 1 Frontex Malta
Heron 1 Frontex Malta

Comprehensive support for uncrewed operations

PROVEN SOLUTIONS

Heron 1 operations managed by Airbus have demonstrated consistent reliability and mission success, accumulating thousands of safe flight hours for Frontex. 

Support capabilities include:

  • End-to-end mission operations and flight planning
  • Maintenance, logistics and fleet sustainment
  • Data management, imagery processing and analysis
  • Pilot and payload-operator training
  • Integration with ground command networks

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