Detail map of Bnei Brak, Tel Aviv District, Israel Overview map of Bnei Brak, Tel Aviv District, Israel

A: Bnei Brak, Tel Aviv District, Israel

The Tadiran Mastiff: The First Modern Surveillance UAV or Drone

1973
IAI/Tadiran Mastiff III UAV at Muzeyon Heyl ha-Avir, Hatzerim airbase, Israel. 2006.
Israeli Airforce/Tadiran Mastiff III UAV at Muzeyon Heyl ha-Avir, Hatzerim airbase, Israel. 2006.

As a result of the 1973 Yom Kippur WarIsraeli Defence Forces wanted to give the field commanders the ability to look "over the hill". The first operational requirements called for a UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) that could carry a 10 kg payload to ranges of 30–50 km. To meet this requirement Tadiran Electronic Industries created the Tadiran Mastiff, which first flew in 1973, and is considered the first modern surveillance UAV or drone. It was 3.3 m (10 ft 10 in) long, with a wingspan of 4.25 m (13 ft 11 in). Before payload it weighed 72 kg (172 lb). It had a maximum speed of 185 km/h (304 lb), and could stay aloft for over 7 hours.

"It featured data-link system and miniaturized electronics that fed live and high-resolution video coverage of the targeted area to operators. It is thus seen as the first modern surveillance UAV. The combination of its long flight endurance of over 7 hours and real-time video streaming gave Israeli forces unprecedented depth of coverage, speed of information delivery and on-station surveillance time" (Wikipedia article on Tadiran Mastiff, accessed 12-09-2013).

Timeline Themes