JERUSALEM, June 8 (Reuters) - Israeli defence electronics firm Elbit Systems said on Sunday it was selected to supply unmanned reconnaissance drones to the Swiss Federal Department of Defence Civil Protection and Sport (DDPS).

The Swiss DDPS said in a separate statement it chose Elbit's Hermes 900 HFE drone to replace its current systems since they have longer endurance in the air and a wider operational range than those currently in use.

"The decision to procure the new reconnaissance drone system ... which will cost around 250 million francs ($280 million), will most probably be submitted for approval to Parliament with the 2015 armaments programme," it said.

The ADS 95 Ranger reconnaissance drone system, which the Swiss Armed Forces have been operating since 2001, will be replaced by 2020, the DDPS added.

($1 = 0.8935 Swiss Francs) (Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by Steven Scheer)