Story ID: 659 UVision.doc
UVision’s Heros Loiter for Attacks
By: David Donald
Caption: Company debuting a new family of smart munitions that can loiter over the target area before making an accurate attack on pop-up targets.
Word Count: 276
UVision (Static A8) is unveiling its Hero family of smart loitering munitions this week here in Paris. To meet a variety of operational requirements, the Israeli company has evolved a range of highly maneuverable weapons, from the 6.6-pound man-packable Hero 30 with a warhead of 1.1 pounds and an endurance of 30 minutes to the 214-pound Hero 900 that can carry a 44-pound warhead for an endurance of up to seven hours. 
  
The munitions are applicable to a variety of tactical and strategic missions, offering the pinpoint accuracy required for urban warfare and the ability to attack moving targets. Able to be launched from land, sea and air, the Hero family uses stabilized optics for surveillance and target acquisition, as well as low-noise pusher propellers that are driven by either electric or gasoline-fueled engines. 
  
The short-range members of the family–the Hero 30, 70 and 120–employ cruciform wings that fold out on launch. They all have electric engines and are canister-launched. The long-range systems–the Hero 250, 400 and 900–use gasoline engines and have fixed wings for rail launch or folding wings for canister launch. The Hero 900 has a range of 155 miles.
  
Each system is designed for a high dash speed to the target area, followed by low-speed loitering as the munition searches for the assigned target or waits for one to pop up. They can also attack pre-programmed GPS coordinates. 
  
An advanced datalink allows operators to select targets that are spotted by the munition’s electro-optics and also permits the changing of targets mid-mission and the transmission of recall/abort commands. Low noise and thermal signatures are significant features of the Hero family.