The army will buy combat drones for 1.5 billion crowns

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The defense has set aside 1.5 billion crowns in its budget for the purchase of combat drones in the years 2023 to 2027. The army still has reconnaissance drones, combat drones could carry weapons and could be used for combat if necessary. This was stated by the spokesman of the Minister of Defense Jan Pejšek.

According to Pejšek, the army has, for example, since 2015 large reconnaissance American drones ScanEagle, which are used by soldiers mainly in Afghanistan for reconnaissance, have flown there for more than 3,600 flight hours. These drones have a range of over 100 kilometers and last in the air for over 20 hours. It also has several smaller drones, such as the Raven RQ-11B.

Pejšek said at the base of the 533rd Battalion of Unmanned Systems in Prostějov, in the future, we want to have not only reconnaissance drones, but also, like other armies, to have drones that, if necessary, could carry armaments, so they could also be used in combat.

A special Prostějov unit, which is in charge of unmanned aerial vehicles, was established in January this year.

The spokesman said, the unit is being built, it should be completed in 2025 and at that time it should have about 300 soldiers.

According to the Minister of Defense Lubomír Metnar, the battalion of unmanned systems fulfills the trends of the 21st century with its name and especially with its technology. Modern armies will be increasingly based on automated and information systems. I am glad that we are keeping up in this direction. In the years 2023 to 2027, we plan to expand the current reconnaissance equipment of the battalion with tactical multi-purpose drones that are able to carry weapons.