In the midst of ongoing tensions between India and Pakistan, the latter announced in a press conference on Thursday that it had successfully shot down a dozen Indian drones that had been sent to the border since last night.
“Indian drones continue to be sent into Pakistan airspace…(India) will continue to pay dearly for this naked aggression,” said Pakistani military spokesperson Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry. However, India is yet to comment on the matter.
The alleged attack comes a day after Indian forces under Operation Sindoor destroyed nine infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Pakistan army claimed that HAROP drones were used by India on Thursday.
What Is Harop?
HAROP, developed by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), is a next-generation loitering munition system. It combines the capabilities of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) with precision-guided munitions.
Range of Harop Drones?
The Harop carries 20 kg of explosives and can stay airborne for up to seven hours. It has a range of 200 kilometres. Formally categorised as a loitering munition, it can detect targets, hover over hostile terrain, and collide with them.
India has imported $2.9 billion worth of military equipment from Israel over the past ten years, reports India TV, quoting TRT Global. In recent years, India and Azerbaijan have bought the drone system.
Harop Drones Has Abort, Re-loiter Capability
The Harop, in the event of changing battlefield conditions, allows an operator to abort an attack, allowing the drone to return to loitering mode, leading to minimization of the risk of collateral damage.
Harop Drones Has Abort, Re-loiter Capability
The Harop is launched from a sealed canister which makes it easy to deply and is capable of immediately transitioning from surveillance to strike mode. The weapons offers powerful situational awareness and weapon solution in one.
Advanced Targeting Systems
HAROP drones are equipped with electro-optical (EO), infrared (IR), and forward-looking infrared (FLIR) sensors. It also has a color CCD camera and anti-radar homing capabilities. It gives Harop comprehensive target detection and identification.
