– This is modern equipment made in Poland. This is equipment developed by a Polish company, and its development also resulted from gaining experience related to the war being waged beyond our eastern border – said Minister Mariusz Błaszczak during a meeting devoted to equipping the Polish Armed Forces with modern weaponry. On Friday, 6 May, the head of the Ministry of National Defence approved an agreement for the delivery of four batteries of GLADIUS unmanned reconnaissance-strike systems, together with training and logistics packages. More drones will be supplied to the Polish Armed Forces this year, significantly enhancing their operational capabilities.
Minister: – We can say that this equipment will significantly strengthen the Polish armed forces, which must be strong and powerful in order to deter an aggressor. We are consistently strengthening the Polish armed forces. These four batteries will go to the artillery regiments of the Polish Armed Forces. Their task will be to conduct operations that are, firstly, reconnaissance-oriented, but secondly, also strike-oriented.
As he noted, several hundred drones will be added to the equipment of the Polish Armed Forces this year.
More about drones
The GLADIUS batteries of unmanned reconnaissance-strike systems will be used to conduct aerial imagery reconnaissance with FT-5 reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles equipped with optoelectronic heads that enable image recording both in daylight and using thermal imaging.
The system’s effectors will be GLADIUS strike unmanned aerial vehicles integrated with the TOPAZ fire-control system used by the Polish Armed Forces. A battery module will comprise launchers, command vehicles, ammunition vehicles, technical-support vehicles, and a reserve of GLADIUS strike unmanned aerial vehicles.