Morocco reportedly received surveillance drones

Morocco’s military is said to have received three Heron surveillance drones last week after the French military decommissioned from their surveillance duties over the middle east. The drones were said to have cost around $48 million each when the French purchased them.

Morocco reportedly received surveillance drones

Morocco reportedly received three surveillance drones from Isreal via the French military on January 26th, six years after the drones were purchased back in 2014.

The drones were purchased in an effort to modernize the Moroccan military and help fight terrorist and rebel groups in the Sahara.

Dassault, a French defense contractor and the company behind the Mirage fighter jets acted as a middle man to ensure the deal went smoothly with Israel.

The Heron surveillance drone first took to the skies back in 1994 but was only introduced for use in 2005. Heron is capable of Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) surveillance missions able to collect data for up to 52 hours per flight. The Heron can carry a vast amount of payloads including, a thermographic camera, visible light camera, intelligence systems, radar systems, and target acquisition totaling up to 250 kg.

In 2014, the Super Heron drone was announced at the Singapore Air Show as a refined version of the original Heron. This new Heron has a 200 horsepower diesel engine and a range of 1000 km when controlled by satellite. The Heron has a flight time of 45 hours at 30,000 ft with a cruising speed of 80 knots and a top speed of 150 knots.

The drone is popular and is in use by some of the world’s most powerful militaries, including Israel, Turkey, India, Brazil, Canada, Australia, France, Azerbaijan, Greece, Germany, Singapore, and the United States.

Stay in touch!

If you’d like to stay up to date with all the latest drone news, scoops, rumors, and reviews, then follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram, or sign up for our daily email newsletter that goes out every weekday at 6 p.m. ET.

Buy your next drone directly from manufacturers such as DJI, Parrot, or Yuneec, or retailers like Adorama, Amazon, B&H, BestBuy, DroneNerds, or eBay. By using our links, we will make a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you for helping DroneDJ grow!

Photo: Airbus