The Shotdown Drone is Israeli: Priced Between 1.5-2 Million Dollars, Expert Provides Details

The drone utilized by Azerbaijani forces in Gegharkunik is an "Aerostar" type of medium-class unmanned aerial vehicle, which Azerbaijan has been purchasing from Israel since 2008. This was noted in an interview with Taron Hovhannisyan, an analyst at the "Orbeli" Center.

“Since 2011, there is also a joint production in Azerbaijan, meaning they bring in the parts and assemble the "Aerostar" and the "Orbita" type reconnaissance drones within Azerbaijan. The mentioned drone can operate in the air for up to 12 hours. It is a standard medium-class drone, capable of traveling up to 200-250 km from its launch site or maintaining communication with its main base,” he explained.

The expert pointed out that it is quite complex to provide prices for military technology, as market prices can vary greatly. “According to open sources, Azerbaijan pays around 1.5 to 2 million dollars for each unit to Israel, but the price may differ due to individual agreements,” he added.

According to Taron Hovhannisyan, given the ongoing clashes and aggression from Azerbaijan in the Gegharkunik area, it is suggested that the Armenian side should take corresponding actions, perhaps by concentrating military equipment in certain locations. Azerbaijani forces will likely attempt to first document whether similar movements occur and exactly where they happen. “Another possibility could be that they were trying to check the functioning of the Armenian Armed Forces' air defense. Purely from a military perspective, these functions could have been assigned to the flight of that drone, but on the other hand, this could simultaneously be a step aimed at carrying out further aggression or escalating the situation,” he stated to the news outlet.

When asked whether it is easy to shoot down a drone, the expert replied, “It’s a complex question. It’s not that it’s easy or difficult. It depends on the air defense systems, their types, as well as the number of drones. For example, during the second war in Artsakh, the situation significantly complicated because Azerbaijan was using different types and a large number of drones and other flying objects such as airplanes and helicopters. In this situation, every air defense system has limited capabilities and simultaneously limited target detection capabilities. If there are many more than that, and the airspace is overloaded, then the problem for air defense becomes complicated. In this case, reconnaissance-type drones, especially if they are attacking in limited numbers, shouldn’t pose much of a challenge to intercept.”