Israel-based Elbit Systems said Tuesday it completed a series of flights of its Micro CoMPASS electro-optic payload with advanced capabilities as part of its Hermes 90 unmanned aircraft system (UAS). The company said the flights demonstrated day and night enhanced capabilities, including day and night target recognition and mobile and stationary targets tracking. The enhanced Micro CoMPASS also offers a 3-axis configuration, the company said. The payload’s thermal night camera features continuous zoom, allowing a wide observation field, thus providing immediate mission intelligence and fast detection/recognition ratio to maximize overall system agile response and sensor to shooter loop capability.
The Hermes 90 UAS has already performed successful flight tests with a heavy fuel engine, a basic requirement and an important capability for maritime UAS operations when operating from ships. The U.S. configuration of the Hermes 90 system, named STORM, is being offered for the joint USN/USMC Small Tactical UAS (STUAS) program by UAS Dynamics, a Fort Mill, S.C.-based company, jointly owned by Elbit Systems of America and General Dynamics Armaments and Technology Products.