Hermes 450 reaches 70,000 hours in Afghanistan

A British Army Hermes 450 in flight (Picture Sergeant Steve Blake, UK MoD)

19 September 2013 Ministry of Defence

The British Army's Hermes 450 (H-450) unmanned air systems have completed over 70,000 hours of surveillance support in Afghanistan.

This is the equivalent of 8 years of non-stop flying.

Operated by the Theatre Integrated Unmanned Air Systems (ThIUAS) Battery at Camp Bastion, UK forces have clocked up more flying hours than any other nation with H-450 in Afghanistan.

The system provides headquarters staff with persistent intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance via electro-optical and infrared sensors out to a range of 150 kilometres.

A British Army Hermes 450 at Camp Bastion in Afghanistan (library image) [Picture: Sergeant Steve Blake, Crown copyright]

H-450 can be used for a wide range of tasks such as reconnaissance of an area prior to operations, and maintaining watch over troops on the ground.

Major Jonathan Buxton, ThIUAS Battery Commander, said:

It is a great achievement to have reached over 70,000 hours of flying with Hermes 450 which shows not only the importance of the benefits it provides but also the dedication of all those involved in operating them out here in difficult conditions.

H-450 has been a vital tool for operations in Helmand over the years and continues to provide persistent surveillance protecting UK and Afghan troops today.

A British Army Hermes 450 in flight (library image) [Picture: Sergeant Steve Blake, Crown copyright]

The ThIUAS Battery operates 5 surveillance windows of H-450 in support of UK and Afghan troops in Helmand province – an increase from 2 when H-450 was introduced in 2007. Since that time, integration with ground forces has been developed significantly as has the training for H-450 operators.

Major Buxton added:

The UAS trade offers something different for the more technically minded recruits joining the Army today.

The H-450 operators’ course is extremely challenging, with junior soldiers taking on a lot of responsibility at an early stage, especially when looking after the equipment and being responsible for captaincy of the aircraft.