"Your Invisible Eye in the Sky"
The UAVs of the Rokhev Shamayim specialist unit that shorten and close the
fire cycle in the IDF Artillery Corps
Dan Arkin | 26/06/2016
http://www.israeldefense.co.il/en/content/your-invisible-eye-sky

The reason for the existence of such UAV units as the Rokhev Shamayim (= Sky
Rider) unit of the IDF Artillery Corps was aptly explained by the former
commander of IDF Southern Command, Maj. Gen. Sammy Turjeman, when he issued
a certificate of appreciation to the unit for its accomplishments during
Operation Protective Edge, which stated: "During the operation, the training
of new teams and the assimilation of resources continued throughout the
fighting, and in cooperation with the fire units, the commanders developed a
technique that enhanced the ability of the fire units to support the combat
elements."

That is the core of the contribution of the aerial medium of the Artillery
Corps and the forces of the IDF Ground Arm – full cooperation of the UAV
unit in shortening and closing the fire cycle. "Rokhev Shamayim UAVs were
deployed in all of the sectors where they assisted the infantry and armored
forces, identified enemy targets and prevented attempts to attack our own
forces," continued Maj. Gen. Turjeman. The IDF Ground Arm website was more
specific: "Unlike the IAF, Artillery Corps units have their missions
assigned to them by the IDF Ground Arm, and are intended to assist in
identifying targets, directing elements on the ground and closing the fire
cycle. The IDF Artillery Corps employs the following UAV units: the Hermes
450 UAV unit, assigned to support the divisional command echelon, and the
Rokhev Shamayim UAV layout that operates smaller UAVs (Skylark) to support
the battalion commander and company commander echelons. Rokhev Shamayim
operators join the commanders of the maneuvering battalions (infantry and
armored), and when the need arises for a surveillance picture from an
overhead angle, they launch their UAVs and become the forward eyes of the
battalion.

Rokhev Shamayim in the Artillery Corps

Col. (res.) Sharon Sasportas, who served as commander of the first IDF
Divisional Artillery Group that assimilated the Rokhev Shamayim UAV system,
had this to say about the history of those UAVs: "IDF decided to acquire
UAVs for the tactical (battalion/brigade) echelon, and an argument arose as
to whom the new unit will belong to – the Artillery Corps or the Combat
Intelligence Collection Corps, charged with intelligence gathering. At the
conclusion of a deliberation process, a decision was made according to which
the Artillery Corps would absorb the UAV unit to ensure shorter cycles
between the target acquisition element (on board the UAV) and the shooter
(the artillery battery). This established the connection between
intelligence and fire, which in turn led to the concept that the Artillery
Corps should organize their UAVs in layers – Hermes 450 and Rokhev Shamayim,
so now the Artillery Corps has an air arm for airborne visual intelligence
collection."

On November 1, 2011, the establishment of the Rokhev Shamayim layout was
officially announced, initially at the Palmachim IAF base, near the Hermes
450 unit and the IAF, for the benefit of combined-arms cooperation and the
mandatory flight coordination between the aerial platforms of the Artillery
Corps and those of the IAF. Later on, the Rokhev Shamayim unit was relocated
to a base in Mitzpe-Ramon, still close to the IAF, and that has remained its
permanent base since that time. The warfighters of the Rokhev Shamayim unit
enjoy significant prestige during their military service and the unit is
popular and much in demand among new recruits. The special shoulder badge
adopted by the unit contributed to that popularity. It depicts a winged
horse, Pegasus, and a sword, a symbol of duality: a fighting sword with a
terrestrial but winged war horse.

Col. (res.) Sasportas: "Until the unit was established we had no visual
surveillance resources up to the brigade level. The divisional command level
was assigned a UAV, but battalion commanders lacked the visual resources,
something light and easy to operate, capable of supplying real-time visual
surveillance. Now Rokhev Shamayim is an organic element of the battalion, a
part of its battle procedure. It offers flexibility in combat: the battalion
commander wants to check what's going on beyond the hill? A UAV is launched,
or several UAVs are constantly airborne, providing on-going reports to the
battalion commander. For example, when enemy armored vehicles are deployed
beyond the hill. Rokhev Shamayim provides a status picture of the combat
zone and a status picture of the targets. The battalion commander can view
the status picture on the operator's screen or as a smaller image on a
display screen he wears on his arm."

Rokhev Shamayim UAVs are operational in dozens of armed forces around the
world, but the unit of the IDF Artillery Corps gained extensive combat
experience during Operation Protective Edge and in hundreds of other IDF
combat operations. "BaYabasha" (= On Land), the newsletter of the IDF Ground
Arm, described several examples of the mode of operation and the closure of
fire cycles using UAVs (Issue #29, October 2014). For example, a testimony
by team leader Second-Lieutenant Danny: "During one of the first days of
Operation Protective Edge, a friendly armored battalion came under enemy
anti-tank fire. There were casualties and we could not identify where the
fire was coming from. A Rokhev Shamayim UAV was airborne at the time, so we
diverted it to the area and it spotted a heavy machine gun on a tower. We
directed an attack helicopter at that target and the firing stopped. Prior
to the operation and before Paratrooper brigade joined in, Rokhev Shamayim
reservist operators had launched dozens of UAV sorties in the context of
routine security operations. They identified targets approaching the
security fence system, collected intelligence and even identified a truck
that was associated with the excavation of underground tunnels. The Rokhev
Shamayim team was a part of the battalion's battle procedure, and constantly
presented a picture of the situation down the route to the battalion
commander and company commander."

The Operators of the Prestigious Unit

Who are the young warfighters of the Rokhev Shamayim unit, who close and
shorten the fire cycles through the aerial medium? Serving with the Rokhev
Shamayim unit is much in demand among new recruits to IDF. The unit
currently accepts female warfighters as well, and the requirements are not
easy: an instruction leaflet preparing youngsters for their first
pre-recruitment interview/examination makes it clear that a Rokhev Shamayim
warfighter must have a good head on his or her shoulders, a high mental
capacity, first-rate physical fitness and good spatial vision that would
enable him/her to properly interpret the surveillance picture generated by
the UAV. At the same time, Rokhev Shamayim warfighters are required to be
able to carry loads of up to 40 kg (the weight of the backpack containing
the dismantled UAV). Recruits accepted to the unit go through basic
Artillery Corps training at the Shivta training base and embark on a long
training course which includes a thorough study of the UAV, practicing of
the assembly/disassembly procedures under different environmental
conditions, simulator training and theoretical studies that include the
principles of flight. At the conclusion of the training period that lasts
about one year, the newly trained warfighters are assigned to the new UAV
operator teams and start their service term with the unit: instruction and
advanced training, day/night navigation (cross country) training,
participation in brigade training exercises, providing support to units
searching for wanted terrorists in the cities of the Judea and Samaria
district to ensure the area of operation is "sterile", assimilation of new
equipment and many other missions.

Skylark Advanced UAVs

The advanced Skylark 1-LEX UAV, manufactured by Elbit Systems and currently
employed by the Rokhev Shamayim unit is known as "Your Invisible Eye in the
Sky". Sources at Elbit Systems told us that more than 30 users operate this
UAV model worldwide, and it has gained combat experience amounting to tens
of thousands of sorties with IDF and NATO members. The Skylark UAV provides
real-time video images and may be carried into the field by a person or on
board a vehicle. It has electrical propulsion, is fully autonomous from
launch to landing and cannot be heard from the ground at a height of 100
meters above ground level. It has an endurance of up to 3 hours, a flight
level of 15,000 feet, a range of 40 kilometers and an encrypted digital
communication channel. The Skylark UAV is controlled by two operators. The
first model of the Skylark family, Skylark-1, is no longer manufactured. It
weighed 7.5 kg, had an endurance of 3 hours and was launched manually. The
Skylark-2 model was sold in small number and its marketing was discontinued.
In February 2016, Elbit Systems unveiled Skylark-3, the next generation of
the Rokhev Shamayim UAV family. The latest model is an autonomous UAV for
the battalion and brigade levels, for reconnaissance, guerrilla operations
and force protection. It provides high-resolution ground images, is
propelled by a small electrical motor and generates a small acoustic
signature. The Skylark-3 has a range of more than 100 km, an endurance of up
to 6 hours and a flight level of 15,000 feet and may be launched from the
ground or from a vehicle.

Ehud Biderman, the marketing manager of Elbit Systems' Intelligence
division, is in charge of marketing in Israel: "This is a new model of
silent electrical UAVs, the platform is extremely silent, fuel is not
necessary, it is easier to change a battery than to refuel, it has an
extended endurance and improved data processing, interpretation and
dissemination capabilities. It can carry a diversified range of payloads in
terms of type and weight. Skylark-3 has been acquired by IDF and will soon
join the Rokhev Shamayim unit. This is the Next Thing!"

Elbit Systems maintains on-going working relations with the Rokhev Shamayim
unit of the IDF Artillery Corps and Elbit specialists provide training and
support for the platforms the unit operates. This support is provided even
under combat conditions during operations such as Pillar of Defense and
Protective Edge. The people of Elbit Systems work on the ground with the
warfighters, either on active reserve duty or as support specialists on the
company's behalf.

To demonstrate the fact that Skylark UAVs can perform civilian missions as
well, Elbit Systems loaned a UAV to the Jezreel Valley Regional Council in
November 2015, for the benefit of the council's 40 settlements. The UAV is
employed for various purposes where airborne surveillance can help
accomplish such objectives as the environmental protection, security,
prevention of agricultural theft, unlawful waste disposal, transportation
problems and so forth.

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) offers an extensive range of UAVs, from
the smallest ones of the Bird Eye family through the Searcher and Heron UAVs
to their largest platform – the Heron TP UAV. All of those platforms are
sold to numerous countries, including Israel. Danny Bichman, marketing
manager for IAI's MALAT Division (and a reservist IDF UAV specialist)
explains: "The demand for MUAVs and tactical UAVs by military ground forces
is increasing, including the demand for UAVs to be employed in urban
military (counterterrorism) missions, where the enemy remains hidden, moves
very quickly, emerges and goes back into hiding – and is generally very
difficult to track. This is the time when real-time intelligence becomes
critical – not static intelligence, but readily-available real-time
intelligence. That is why the demand (for UAVs) in the IDF as well as
overseas is substantial. The systems utilize state-of-the-art technologies,
the sensors are becoming smaller so the UAV systems become smaller and
lighter – this is the current trend."

The Bird Eye UAV family consists of three models: Bird Eye 400, 650 and
650D. Bird Eye 400 is a mini UAV weighing 5.5 kg with a day/night payload,
2-3 operators, carried in a backpack or by a Jeep-size vehicle and capable
of taking off and landing in the field. Bird Eye 650 is a larger UAV with an
endurance of 4 hours, manual or catapult launching and an exclusive IAI
patent: when the UAV prepares to land, it flips in mid-air and drops to the
ground using a parachute in an upside-down position, so as to prevent damage
to the payload and the camera it contains. Bird Eye 650D is larger than the
Bird Eye 650, weighs 30 kg, has an endurance of 15 hours and more, a
gasoline engine, a substantial payload that includes a laser pointer and a
communication range of 150 km. This UAV is controlled by a ground control
station which is a ruggedized laptop computer. It provides full color video
images during the day and infrared images during the night, and the operator
or intelligence user/commander may be provided with a personal reception
kit. The images provided by the UAV may be disseminated and uploaded to the
network.

The Innocon Company offers the Spider UAV in the small UAV category. This
UAV is controlled by a single operator in the field, has a silent electrical
motor so it can fly very close to the target without being detected and land
on hard surfaces. The Spider UAV has an endurance of two hours and a range
of 10 km.