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DUBAI–Missile manufacturer MBDA plans to develop loitering munitions in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in partnership with French startup Fly-R and the local defense materiel agency the Tawazun Council for Defense Enablement.
The work builds on MBDA’s efforts to establish a weapons development, production and technical support capability to aid the UAE armed forces. It also follows the company’s creation of a Missile Engineering Center in Abu Dhabi. MBDA has also established a new entity, MBDA UAE, to position itself as a long-term industrial partner with the country.
The Fly-R munition is a box-launched, diamond-wing air system that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to support the operator. MBDA describes it as having “high speed and exceptional maneuverability.” As part of its effort to build a missile component ecosystem in the UAE, MBDA has worked with supplier ASB Group to bring over a thermal battery production capability.
Thermal batteries are a crucial element in missiles. They can be stored for years, withstand highly varied temperatures and power onboard electronics.
Emirati Thermal Batteries is to produce the batteries in a new plant at the Tawazun Industrial Park, which will serve a branch of ASB Group.
Matar Ali Al Romaithi, director general of the Industrial Development Directorate at the Tawazun Council for Defense Enablement, said the project was enabling the country’s defense industrial sector by attracting advanced technologies and localizing supply chains. These efforts would “strengthen the UAE’s role as a regional hub for advanced defense industries,” he said.
MBDA CEO Eric Béranger said the company’s work on loitering munitions in the UAE would demonstrate its commitment to the country. “This long-term collaboration allows us to continue supporting our common ambition of being an integral part of the growth of [the] UAE defense industry in the best way possible,” Béranger said.
The Missile Engineering Center is already working on the development of the SmartGlider family of air-launched glide bombs, with plans to be integrated onto the UAE’s Dassault Rafales and exported in the future.
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