Elbit Systems, one of Israel's leading defense electronics companies, said the little Skylark can be carried and operated by a single soldier, covering an area within a range of 6 miles day or night, the company said. It did not give details of its exact size or weight.
Skylark is operational and currently deployed in the global war on terror in Israel, Iraq and Afghanistan. The Skylark as suited for close range, beyond-the-next hill, counter-terror missions.
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Lt. Col. Matthew McLaughlin of CENTCOM, the American command that handles Iraq and Afghanistan, said the military would not confirm the use of the drone, but is always looking for aircraft with such capabilities.
The Skylark is just one of several items of Israeli defense hardware deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The state-owned arms-maker Rafael said it had won a contract to supply the U.S. Marine Corps with state-of the-art armored vehicles, and military analysts said Israeli firms had long been supplying and maintaining equipment for American ground and naval forces in Iraq, although both buyers and sellers generally preferred to keep a low profile.
Small Israeli-made unmanned planes are collecting intelligence for U.S.-led forces in Iraq and Afghanistan, Elbit, the manufacturer stated.