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www.sea-technology.com November 2016 / st 27 Skylark The latest unmanned system intro- duced by the company to the mari- time arena is the Skylark C Mini UAS (unmanned aerial system) for tactical naval and maritime applications. This new, highly autonomous mini-UAS is based on the Skylark I Mini UAS, which is now fully operational and in use by dozens of customers around the world. The new Skylark C transforms and extends the operational capabili- ties of its land-based counterpart into an organic maritime intelligence, sur- veillance, target acquisition and recon- naissance (ISTAR) asset. As a maritime vessel organic asset, Skylark C pro- vides the capabilities to inspect mari- time activities from a safe distance, observe targets from a bird's eye view, perform reconnaissance over coastal areas and perform continuous covert surveillance, thus extending the ves- sel's ISR capabilities with respect to range, rate and quality of infor- mation obtained. Mission-effective, with highly autonomous flight ca- pability, Skylark C comprises an electrically propelled air vehicle with a very low visual and acoustic signature, making it an ideal solu- tion for covert operations such as special naval operations, border security, anti-terrorism and anti-pi- racy operations. The aerial vehicle utilizes Elbit Systems' UAS tech- nology and know-how, featuring an advanced INS and a stabilized electro-optical (EO) payload with a high-resolution thermal imager and color daylight camera that enables continuous day/night monitoring in diverse weather conditions. During the mission, high-quality day or night video is available in real time in the MCS. The opera- tor focuses on the mission rather than on flying the vehicle, applying convenient and effective control features such as a fly-by camera. Retrieval of the UAS after the mission is enabled through the use of a fully autonomous parachute-based recovery, al- lowing the lightweight water- proof air vehicle to glide, land and float safely on water sur- faces guided by GPS. A net re- covery on deck is an optional capability. The entire process, from recovery to next launch, takes no longer than 15 min. Only two operators are re- quired to operate the system. Until recently, the ability to achieve real-time maritime situational awareness and IS- TAR capabilities in a short pe- riod of time and with minimal resources remained a significant gap. Now, with Skylark C, small-scale naval crews, such as special operations forc- es and coast guard patrols, can capture mission-critical information using an intuitive and organic system and, as a result, significantly improve their op- erational effectiveness. ST Elad Aharonson has served as executive vice presi- dent and general manager of Elbit Systems' ISTAR Division since April 2015. From 2011 until his current appointment, he served as executive vice president and general manager of Elbit's UAS Divi- sion and prior to that served as vice president of Elbit's UAV systems from 2009 to 2011. Before join- ing Elbit Systems in 2004, Aharonson served as an officer in Israel Defense Forces holding command positions in the Artillery Branch and in the Ground Forces UAV unit. He holds an L.L.B. degree in law and a bachelor's degree in business administration from the Hebrew University. (Top) Skylark C parachuted safely to the sea as part of recovery operation. (Bottom) Skylark C launched from a vessel. info@edgetech.com USA 1.508.291.0057 Clearly Superior Imaging SONAR SYSTEMS SUB-BOTTOM PROFILERS BATHYMETRY SYSTEMS SIDE SCAN SONARS