South Korea has deployed the Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) Harpy anti-radiation unmanned air vehicle (UAV) and is on the verge of placing another order. Any additional purchase could include developed versions of the ground-launched system.
The South Korean army purchased 100 Harpys in a deal valued at about $50 million in 1997. This batch has been deployed.
South Korea is negotiating a purchase of around 100 more systems. This could include developed versions with improved homing sensors to allow the Harpy to attack non-radiating targets.
Developed by IAI's MBT division, the Harpy is in service in Israel and with other customers, including India. The weapon is ground-launched and can loiter for 2h at around 400km (215nm) from the launch point. The system is able to attack targets that have switched off the emitter. Each Harpy launcher contains 18 all-composite delta-winged drones. A typical battery contains three launchers.
• Rafael is to supply the next generation of transceivers for the Israeli air force's fighter fleet. An initial order is for 100 systems. Rafael is teamed with Rockwell Collins and Elbit Systems, with the US company providing the basic unit and Elbit managing the integration task.
Source: Flight International
