Czech Army to invest in new drones

The Czech Army is planning to invest in drones with combat capability by the year 2020, the Czech News Agency reports. The army is ready to invest one billion crowns. Currently, the Czech military uses unmanned aerial vehicles for surveillance only.

At a press conference in Prague on Tuesday, the chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, General Josef Bečvář, confirmed that the army would also buy new ScanEagle drones at the cost of some 200 million crowns. The army is already using the drones, supplied by the US, in Afghanistan.

General Bečvář confirmed that next year would see an increase in the number of Czech soldiers serving in Afghanistan and Iraq if approved by Parliament. As many as 650 soldiers could serve on the missions.

Author: Jan Velinger