The Pioneer developed from a joint agreement between Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI) and AAI Corporation. The system was designed form the outset to perform a variety of unarmed battlefield surveillance and reconnaissance roles and could be launched from land (via catapult or runway) or at sea (via catapult or rocket assist) returning to vessels by way of net or arrestor hook. Flying times varied depending on the overall payload weight but several hours could be achieved. The strength in the Pioneer system lay in its ability to relay real-time information through analog video by way of a line-of-sight (LOS) data link. The RQ-2 Pioneer system was put into action in the Persian Gulf War of 1991, Somalia, Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq under the operational US branches of the Army, Navy and Marines. It also saw service with forces sponsored by Israel and Singapore.
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