Azerbaijan has purchased the Sky Dew high-altitude aerostat from Israel, equipped with a state-of-the-art long-range missile and aircraft detection system, the official news agency AZE.media reported last week.
Sky Dew (Tal Shamayim in Hebrew), or High Availability Aerostat System (HAAS), is a high-altitude missile defense aerostat used by the IDF since 2022. It flies using a tethered blimp, developed by the US TCOM company. The Sky Dew system was developed by the Israel Missile Defense Organization (IMDO) and the US Missile Defense Agency (MDA). The system is deployed on Israel’s northern and southern borders.
The primary mission of Sky Dew is to detect cruise missiles, drones, and other advanced aerial threats flying at low altitudes, providing early warning. To achieve this, the aerostat is equipped with an AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar capable of long-range detection.
Azerbaijan borders two countries that threaten its security: Armenia and Iran. It has engaged in two wars with Armenia since the 1990s, and has maintained a cool diplomatic relationship with Iran, which has been marred by provocations by Tehran.
The aerostat can maintain continuous surveillance for several days and is capable of tracking up to 500 targets with a detection range of over 250 km.
It is also able to avoid ground clutter interference, making the aerostat particularly useful for detecting low-flying threats. At the same time, its upper altitude limits far exceed those of ground-based radars, offering a much greater visibility range to the horizon.
