Israeli manufacturer Innocon has completed a successful series of qualification flights with its newest micro unmanned air system - the Spider.

The Spider has a 2.5kg (5.5lb) maximum take-off weight, says Innocon president Michael Armon. Each system will comprise two air vehicles, a ground control station and two day/night payloads, with the entire package to weigh 15kg.

 Spider UAS - Innocon

Innocon

Innocon recently signed a co-operation agreement with Sweden's Imint to install the latter's Vidhance processing engine into its ground control station software. This will allow for real-time video processing, which the Israeli company says will increase the likelihood of detecting time-critical events.

"By selecting a software solution over a hardware solution, we gain a lot of benefits," says Innocon vice-president business development Zvika Nave.

Innocon is offering the Spider for an Indian air force and navy tender for 95 micro UAS, facing competition from rivals including BlueBird and Elbit Systems. Armon expects a selection decision to be made in March. Additional Indian requirements could boost the number of such systems to be acquired to about 530, according to industry sources.

Source: Flight International