The Hawki Kestrel system is a unique combination of manned reconnaissance platforms with remotely-piloted vehicles (RPVs). The platforms were designed for wide area persistent surveillance and frontier/coastal patrol from altitudes up to 25,000 feet, but integrated with the RPVs they may be used at lower levels to monitor – with unrivalled economy – the security of perimeters, lines of communication, power transmission, pipelines, and sensitive installations.
During the earlier stages of the system's development the platform was highly praised by the MoD's Aeroplane & Armament Experimental Establishment after a four-month evaluation at Boscombe Down, and has since been endorsed by senior generals in the UK and US. As an agile and versatile sensor system it will be of interest to Hawki clients principally for the detection, recording and mapping of movement, leakages, pollution, transmissions, explosive and radioactivity, all of which may be potential threats to vulnerable infrastructure posed by terrorists, and in low-intensity conflict the sensors' capabilities will counter many of the IED-ambush threats.
The system is modular, allowing integration with equipment furnished by the clients, and substantially reducing the cost of maintenance associated with other single-role systems.
