Israel Aerospace Industries gets border protection sale

March 29 (UPI) -- Israel Aerospace Industries received a contract to supply various border protection systems to an undisclosed nation in South America.

In a statement announcing the deal, the company did not reveal the contract's monetary value, but said it is worth "tens of millions of dollars."

Under the contract, IAI will provide land-based systems and sensors in addition to unmanned aerial vehicles fitted for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions. The customer will also receive ground vehicles and cyber systems designed to provide operators with real-time data fusion capabilities.

The customer will receive multiple BirdEye650D Small Tactical Unmanned Aerial Systems, which can fly at a range of 93 miles and feature a 15-hour flight endurance. The order also includes miniature BirdEye 400 units, HoverMast100 systems and ELI-3302 Granite ISRV vehicles.

IAI officials say the contract underscores the versatility of the company's assets.

"IAI's land systems activities are gaining momentum; we now offer a range of solutions both at the strategic and tactical levels, for dealing with a wide variety of threats," IAI Land Systems vice president Gadi Shamni said in a press release. "The professional challenge in defending the four border crossings in question is considerable -- this is a varying terrain without geographical contiguity and the different systems needed some adaptation so as to provide a comprehensive and holistic solution."