The IAI Heron was put on display at the 1999 Paris Air Show and generated some interest; a project to field a derivative was started two years later.

A number of industrial setbacks delayed the delivery, notably that the satellite communication system did not conform with Air Force requirements.

The drones were modified to satisfy the requirements, changing them from an "off-the-shelf" product into a custom plane built specially for the French Air Force.

The plane and onboard computer are built by Malat, a division of Israel Aerospace Industries, based on the IAI Heron.

The SIDM entered service in June 2008 in the Drone Experimentation Squadron 1/330 Adour, in Cognac, a unit of the Centre des expérimentations militaires.

It contains optronic and IR sensors, a laser designator that doubles as a rangefinder, and a high-resolution, fixed echo suppressing synthetic aperture radar.

[3] In late March or early April, drone number F-SDAY was damaged when it crashed due to freezing, and possibly to human or software error.