The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) enhanced the intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) capabilities of the 3rd Generation Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) as it inaugurated the Heron 1 unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) into 119 Squadron (SQN).

Minister for Defence Dr Ng Eng Hen, who officiated at the inauguration ceremony at Murai Camp, pointed out that the SAF’s vision for UAVs started as early as the 1970s, quoting Singapore’s first Defence Minister Dr Goh Keng Swee: “For our kind of terrain, we must have Remotely Piloted Vehicles. We must see the enemy without being seen.”

Featuring state-of-the-art avionics, detection capabilities and communication systems, the Heron 1 UAV will replace the Searcher class UAV that has been in service since 1994.

Compared to its predecessor, which has a maximum operating altitude of 10,000 feet, the Heron 1 UAV can fly twice as high at 20,000 feet. It has a flight endurance of over 24 hours, more than three times that of the Searcher UAV (eight hours). Furthermore, the Heron 1 UAV has a maximum operating range of 200 km, double that of the Searcher class.