On Friday the 11th of January an official ceremony was held in Mustvee cordon in the North East of Estonian.  During the event Eli handed over nine sets of our ELIX-XL drones to the Estonian Police and Border Guard Board.

Head of PPA’s integrated border maintenance office, Helen Neider-Veerme, said that they have been testing different drones for some time, looking for the most effective type to be used to support the border guards’ daily tasks. “Using drones is a good way to prevent and react to incidents on the border,” Neider-Veerme said. They are a quicker and more convenient way to gain an overview of situations in places that weren’t easily accessible.

The head of Piusa cordon Mr Valmar Hinno noted that if they would have had these drones earlier then numerous incidents would have been easier to solve. He went on to say that he has had the honor of leading the Piusa cordon for five years and during this time they have worked hundreds of incidents. If they would have had the possibility of getting an aerial overview of situations then in his opinion many of the incidents would have been solved quicker and more efficiently.

Eli CEO Mr Tõnu Vaher said few words about the roots of Eli and how the company has always been in close cooperation with the local defense and law enforcement. He went on to describe some of the key capabilities of the ELIX-XL platform and how it has been developed from the ground up to operate in the harsh Estonian conditions. Additionally he noted that the procurement of systems from a domestic company is an acknowledgment to the capabilities of the larger defense and security industry in Estonia. This in terns will be a grate reference on the international market as well.

The cost of the drone project is set at half a million euros, of which €444,450 are coming out of the EU’s security fund and €55,550 out of the Ministry of the Interior’s budget.

After the drones were handed over to the heads of cordons, Eli personnel carried out a demonstration of the ELIX-XL capabilities for the guests and media.