Britain's fleet of Watchkeeper drones cannot operate in bad weather. Although one such drone costs around £5m, none are used in operations.
This is what The Times writes about. It is noted that the spy drones were so modified that they became too heavy. This has turned the entire program into an "absolute disaster". One official said eight of those £40m drones had been written off.
Watchkeeper was created based on the Israeli Hermes 450 drone. It played a key role in Jerusalem's anti-terrorist operations in the Middle East.
Former British Army Major Chris Lincoln Jones observed the Hermes 450 in action many years ago after being asked to analyze its performance and "copy" for the British Ministry of Defence. He describes the Hermes 450 as "the best drone in the world". According to him, the drone is capable of monitoring its targets on the ground for 17 hours. At an altitude of 18,000 feet (over 5,000 km), it is hard to hear and almost impossible to see.
The British version, however, was less successful. Several drones crashed. This is partly due to the fact that they were loaded with additional functions.
"The drone can operate under certain weather conditions. An inquiry into defense procurement by the House of Commons Defense Committee revealed that the project, which went into service years late, was "burdened" with 265 user requirements and 1,910 additional system requirements," the publication writes."
Conservative MP, committee member and former Armed Forces Minister Marc Francois said the story "epitomizes everything that is wrong with MoD procurement". According to him, the project is "a real disaster that is many years late and is practically obsolete.
None of the drones are known to be operationally deployed, although they are participating in the exercise.
The publication notes that the UK Ministry of Defense has begun to change its procurement system. Ministers now want to focus more on cheaper and less complex products.
Watchkeeper is a high-tech drone that has flown more than 4,000 hours providing vital information to soldiers on the ground. It has been successfully deployed around the world, including in Afghanistan, where it has played a critical role in protecting British troops," the MoD spokesman added.
The Thales Watchkeeper WK450 is an unmanned reconnaissance, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance aircraft used by the British Army. It is noted that it can be used in all weather conditions.
These drones are produced by a joint venture between Elbit and Thales UK. The drones are based on Elbit's Hermes 450 project. Watchkeeper is 6.5 meters long and has a wingspan of 10.9 meters. It can operate at an altitude of 16,000 feet (4,900 m).
The first flight of this drone took place on April 14, 2010. During the development of Watchkeeper, some of the devices break down. Two drones crashed during tests over Cardigan Bay in February and March 2017, and in 2018 the number of lost drones rose to 5. Since 2014, a total of 8 such drones have failed.< /p>