IAF's Unmanned Aerial Vehicle crashes near Bhuj

A Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicle of the Indian Air Force, used for surveillance, crashed on Wednesday on the outskirts of a village near Bhuj town in Gujarat's Kutch district. "IAF's Heron UAV which was used for surveillance in the area, crashed near Mankunva village, about 40 kms from Bhuj town in Kutch," Defence PRO at Ahmedabad, Wing Commander Abhishek Matiman said. The cost of the Heron UAV is approximately Rs 80 crores, the official said. "The reason behind the crash will be known after a court of inquiry gives its findings. As the UAV was remote-controlled and there was no person in it, the exact reasons behind the crash are not yet known," he said. According to Bhuj Superintendent of Police D N Patel, there was no casualty reported due to the crash in Mankunva village near Bhuj town. Heron is a medium-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle developed by Malat division of Israel Aerospace industry. It is capable of medium altitude long endurance operations of up to 52 hours' duration. It was acquired by India from Israel.