Gaza, ALRAY - For third time in six months , an Israel  unmanned aerial vehicle crashed into the sea about two kilometers from Palmahim kibbutz  beach on Tuesday. The cause of the crash remains unclear, Haaretz reported.

In July, the Israel military  forces intentionally crashed a drone of the same kind, after the aircraft displayed signs of a technical malfunction.

A similar incident occurred in May, when the IMF intentionally downed one of its own Heron-class unmanned aerial vehicles, known as "Shoval," in the sea following an engine malfunction.

IMF officials explained at the time that the decision to down the UAV was made due to concerns that control over the drone would be lost, and it might crash into populated areas.

In January 2012, a different type of a Heron-class drone, known as "Eitan," crashed in southern Israel while on a test flight. The flight was testing new navigation components in the UAV. A preliminary investigation indicated that the accident was caused by a technical malfunction, Haaretz reported.