350 Millions Baht to Purchase Surveillance Camera Mounted Airship From Aria International
Posted by gmay168 in Aria International, tags: Aria InternationalKomchadluk Newspaper
News Translation from Komchadluk Newspaper
350 Millions Baht on Purchasing of a Surveillance Camera Mounted Airship for a Mission to Suppress the Southern Insurgency
The unrest in 3-Southernmost provinces has been a continuous concerned by the Democrat Party led Government. Of particular concern were the several attacking efforts made by militants to discredit the Armed Forces.
Recently, “a group of militants”, within 1 week, attacked and killed 7 military officers operated in the area. The events started from an ambush of killing 3 patrolling personnel, subsequently, the killing of a coordinating officer and 4 rangers by a bomb planted on their return from the military camp of Inkhayooth, Yala Province.
Despite the “the Government and the Armed Forces” having tried hard to deal with this serious problem, they are always a “step behind” the militants who can still play the game above the Government authority. Thus, a program of purchasing an “Airship” or “Giant balloon” has been initiated as an alternative path for dealing with the problem.
The cabinet has approved the purchase of 1 airship from Aria International Incorporated of USA with the budget of 350 millions baht giving to the Internal Security Operations Command or ISOC for using in a security mission in the 3 Southernmost provinces. It is for both “proactive and preventive operations”. The “preventive mission” is for surveying the 3 Southernmost provinces, patrolling in bordering areas, monitoring transporting routes, particularly, railways which have often been attacked by militants to discredit the Government.
The “proactive mission” is aimed at having the airship flown and drifted into critical areas to take pictures and downlink the data to the commander station. The recorded real-time pictures can be transmitted to display in a commander station in the Advanced Region 4 of ISOC.
The cost of 350 millions baht are divided into 250 millions baht for the airship, 70 millions baht for 2 sets of day/night cameras, the rest of 20 millions baht is for purchasing ground communicating equipment. These components are integrated into 1 airship system. It has the capacity of drifting and flying in the air higher than the operational range of M. 16 firearms in both day and night operations.
Colonel Thanathip Swangsaeng, spokesman of ISOC, said, it was necessary to purchase the airship for an intelligence mission for the country security which focuses on Southern areas and bordering lines within the internal security mission of the Armed Forces.
In addition, Aria International Incorporated, a vehicle equipment and aircraft component manufacturer, has been given an option to build an airship hanger with the cost of 30 millions baht. Its building location will be considered later.
The airship purchase was arranged on a special case because the ISOC was urgently needed this war material to be used in the 3 Southernmost provinces in order to protect the lives and properties of the people and officers in the areas.
The secondary mission of the airship is for inspecting several parts of area, particularly in bordering zones, monitoring critical sites such as railways, damps, electricity generating plants, sensitive transporting points. Above all, it will be used in the manner of observation, in planning of manpower arrangement into the escaping routes of the militants.
“It is as if we have the miracle eyes staring from the sky to capture illegal trading and human trafficking activities”
Formally, we have had the war material of unmanned aircrafts but they needed much improvement because installing a camera on an unmanned aircraft would give pictures in low virtual definition or not in real time.
The airship can record real time pictures in both day and night operations, it can fly with highest speed of 90 km/hr, 8 hours for each time of continuous flying, being operated onboard by 2 pilots who control day/night surveillance cameras.
In comparing the loss that incurred on both lives and the Government budgets with the expected performance of the airship with price tag of 350 millions baht, it is a reasonable price. But, for beneficial achievement, it needs time to be proven.
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