Israel Aerospace Industries on Monday unveiled ELLYON, a new multi-mission aircraft designed to gather intelligence, jam radar and communications systems and conduct electronic warfare operations from hundreds of kilometers away.
The platform combines electronic attack capabilities with intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance systems in a single aircraft, according to IAI.
Rather than performing only one specialized mission, ELLYON is intended to collect and analyze intelligence while simultaneously disrupting enemy radar, communications and integrated air defense systems.
The aircraft carries signal intelligence systems, long-range synthetic aperture radar and ground moving target indication capabilities, electro-optical sensors and wide-band satellite communications.
IAI said the platform can operate at stand-off ranges, allowing it to remain at a greater distance from hostile air defenses while still monitoring and interfering with systems across the battlefield.
At the center of the aircraft is an AI-based mission management system that processes information collected by its sensors, generates intelligence assessments and sends them in real time to command centers, ground stations and other aircraft via satellite.
Israel Aerospace Industries' ELLYON
(Photo: IAI)
The company said ELLYON can perform radar jamming and communications jamming during the same mission. That capability is intended to allow operators to coordinate electronic effects against several threats at once rather than relying on separate aircraft and systems.
Its electronic attack suite is designed to operate across a broad range of frequencies and against both airborne and ground-based systems.
The aircraft also includes a self-protection package capable of detecting threats, issuing warnings and activating electronic countermeasures.
IAI has not tied ELLYON to a single aircraft model. The system was designed to be platform-agnostic and can be installed on several types of large business jets, which are increasingly used as the basis for intelligence and surveillance aircraft because of their range, altitude and lower operating costs compared with larger military platforms.
“ELLYON continues this legacy by integrating advanced intelligence collection, electronic attack and AI-driven mission management into a single platform,” IAI Chairman Boaz Levy said.
He described the aircraft as the latest development in IAI’s long-standing work on airborne intelligence systems.
Dror Bar, CEO of IAI subsidiary ELTA Systems, said the aircraft was designed not only to monitor the electromagnetic environment but also to influence it.
“ELLYON represents a technological leap forward, combining stand-off operations with the ability to sense, understand and shape the electromagnetic battlespace,” he said.
According to IAI, the individual technologies incorporated into the system have already been tested operationally, although ELLYON itself was presented as a newly integrated platform.
Those technologies include miniaturized sensors, advanced signal-processing algorithms and AI-based software used to combine information from multiple sources.
The aircraft joins ELTA’s existing family of intelligence platforms developed for the Israel Defense Forces and foreign customers.
IAI said those aircraft have accumulated extensive operational experience in intelligence gathering, air defense support and strategic missions.
The company did not disclose when ELLYON would enter service, which countries may be interested in acquiring it or the expected cost of the platform.