André Hassan Khan Let’s talk
ANDRÉ HASSAN KHAN

Soldier. Author. My own perspective.

Freedom remains real only if we are willing to protect it.

Talking about security means
taking responsibility.

Discover my perspective
SCROLL & EXPLOREMY OWN PERSPECTIVE. A CLEAR STANCE.

I know the
view from above.
And life
afterwards.

I am André Hassan Khan. As a sensor operator on the Heron 1, I carried out missions from a bird’s-eye view.

Today, I write and speak about what stays with us: responsibility, the lasting effects of deployments, and the people behind the technology.

More about me
DRONESSECURITYRESPONSIBILITY

My perspective.
From experience.

The Heron 1 unmanned ISR system.
ISR stands for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance: gathering information, monitoring an area and observing what is happening on the ground.
The console as a human–machine interface.

I have logged 3,000 flight hours as a Heron 1 sensor operator. I am also familiar with the Hermes 450 and the Israeli variant of the Heron TP.

01 / The Heron 1 unmanned ISR system.Photo: Bundeswehr / Kraatz
02 / Beside the aircraft.Photo: Bundeswehr / Pieper
03 / The console as a human–machine interface.

One view. Three perspectives.

Topics & Insights

01 / 03
01 / DRONES & SYSTEMSFROM EXPERIENCE

Understanding.
Technology.

Drones. Sensors. Counter-UAS.
What they can do. Where their limits lie.

KNOWLEDGE STARTS WITH A CLOSER LOOK.
02 / SECURITY & FREEDOMTHINKING AHEAD

Protecting.
Freedom.

Security is a shared task.
Responsibility starts with us.

A CLEAR STANCE NEEDS AN INDEPENDENT VIEW.
03 / PEOPLE & RESPONSIBILITYPERSONAL

The mission.
Stays with us.

Behind every technology are people.
Even after the mission is over.

Read my story
THE PERSPECTIVE BEHIND THE IMAGES.
Heute fühlt sich alles an wie Krieg — book by André Hassan Khan, isolated view

André Hassan Khan · with Gideon Böss

Today, everything
feels like war.

A mission ends.
The images remain.

In my book, I write about Afghanistan, my family, and living with PTSD. A personal story about the traces war leaves behind and finding a way back to life. Published in German as Heute fühlt sich alles an wie Krieg.

Book & excerpt at Rowohlt (German)
ANDRÉ HASSAN KHAN

04 / The person behind the perspective

Lived through.
Worked through.
Spoken about.

Born in Neumünster in 1976. Career soldier. In 2010, I was among the first to bring the Heron 1 unmanned ISR system into operational service in Afghanistan. Our task was to close a gap in intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance for the German Air Force and forces operating in northern Afghanistan. Over my career, I have deployed more than 27 times.

Since my PTSD injury in 2017, I have advocated for a more open conversation about invisible wounds. Because behind every mission are people.

Looking for
more insight?

For readings, conversations,
media enquiries, or a different
perspective on things.

andre@hassankhan.de