An Israeli firm will unveil an unmanned helicopter next week that can carry out advanced surveillance and intelligence missions. Developed by Steadicopter, the Black Eagle 50 mini rotary UAV is just over two meters long and can carry a minimal payload of 3 kg. The unmanned helicopter can remain in the air for as much as three hours and reach altitudes of 9,000 feet and can transmit footage back to a command center from distances of up to 150 km.

The helicopter will be unveiled at the 2009 Israel Defense International Army & Police Exhibition, which will open next week in Tel Aviv, featuring 40 companies from 11 different countries who will display their wares at the expo, which will be visited by official delegations from over 25 countries. The advantage of the helicopter is that, due to its small size, it can collect intelligence from places that standard UAVs would have difficulty reaching. Since it is a helicopter, it can also loiter in the same place for an extended period and is not dependent on special launch or landing conditions. The unmanned helicopter is controlled by a two-man team, which can simply point and click on a digital map, which then sends the aircraft to the target. (Source: The Jerusalem Post)