Over the coming months, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) will fly military drones in civilian airspace for the first time.

Leased to the RAAF by Israel Aerospace Industries, the two Heron remotely piloted Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) will be flown out of Rockhampton Airport in Queensland in June and July.

Wing Commander Jonathan McMullan, who is in charge of the unit that pilots the UAS, was deployed to Afghanistan three times between 2011 to 2013 to oversee Heron missions there. McMullan told Mashable Australia the RAAF intends to take these flights "very slowly and very safely."

The Herons will be flying as part of Exercise Talisman Sabre, a war game between Australia, the U.S. and other nations that happens every second year off Australia's east coast, McMullan said.

The Heron's first activities in civilian airspace will occur between June 22 and 25 with local flights out of Rockhampton to Shoal Water Bay Training Area in Queensland. The unit will then be available for tasking to support Exercise Talisman Sabre for four weeks from July 1, as airstrikes, amphibious landings and submarines attacks are simulated, among other activities.

A Royal Australian Air Force Heron Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) landing at Kandahar Airfield. Image: Corporal Raymond Vance/RAAF

The RAAF's Herons can fly for around 22 hours, with a range of 250 kilometres and a maximum altitude of 30,000 feet. Only fully qualified military pilots fly Australia's Heron aircraft, McMullan added. The pilots have all had a minimum of one tour in Afghanistan, as well as having completed a command of another Australian Defence Force aircraft, such as a helicopter.

In Afghanistan, the Herons provided intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance to enhance situational awareness for Aussie troops between 2010 and 2013, McMullan said. In 2014, they provided support for U.S. forces. "We might go to a village or town, weeks or months in advance, and get an idea of the routine or pattern of life in that area," he said. "Or directly support troop on the ground as they undertook clearances, for example."

"We have such long endurance [with the Herons], we were able to change tasks very rapidly," he added. "If Australian troops came under fire, we would be re-tasked to go to the unit that needed our support the most." The Herons flew their last Afghanistan mission in November 2014.

The UAS are being brought back to Australia so years of flying proficiency developed during 27,000 mission hours in Afghanistan aren't lost, McMullan said. "It's a perishable skill, and by bringing them back we maintain those skills ... The RAAF recognises that UAS are going to feature significantly in the future of our airforce and army," he added.

The government plans for the Herons to be maintained for six years from now, McMullan said. "As we expand our operations in Australia, the intent is to open up to other government tasks, as directed," he added. "Whether for fire, floods or G20 security-type situations." The UAS can be deployed and setup within 72 hours.

McMullan suggested Aussies should have little to fear about the local missions of the Herons over the next few months. The flights of Heron aircraft in civilian airspace will avoid populous areas and general flight paths, McMullan assured Mashable Australia. The RAAF is working with Airservices Australia, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority and local management at Rockhampton airport, he said, to make sure everything runs smoothly and safely.