Italy, France and Germany have signed the European drone program for reconnaissance and surveillance. These countries are currently relied on technology developed by Israel and United States. Spain and Poland have expressed their interest in joining the project.
The defence ministers of three countries have signed the agreement in a ceremony. They pledged a two-year study to lay the basis for a European drone to be operating by 2025.
Most of the drones operated in European Armed Forces are of Israel’s and US’s. This has created a dependence on those countries that the companies and military officials feel bad for the future of European industry and military capabilities.
The European Union’s main objective is to develop a medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) drone, a category that can fly at an altitude of up to 9,000 metres for 24 hours. The Union wants a flexible surveillance drone that could be used for border control, fire-fighting and disaster monitoring.
Tidbits
- Drone is simply is an aircraft without a human pilot aboard.
- They are usually deployed for military and special operation applications.
- UAVs are often preferred for missions that are too dangerous for manned aircraft.
GK Questions
- What is the full form of UAV? Unmanned Aerial Vehicle.
- Name the wheeled version of the unmanned aerial vehicle Nishant? UAV Panchi
