Emirati EDGE Group delivers six unmanned helicopters to Angolan navy

An HT-100 NAVAL unmanned helicopter, made by EDGE Group subsidiary ANAVIA, takes flight. (courtesy EDGE Group)

BEIRUT — United Arab Emirates defense giant EDGE Group announced today that it has delivered six HT 100 NAVAL unmanned helicopters to the Angolan navy, as part of a €1 billion ($1.2 billion) deal struck in 2023.

The delivery took place after the robo-helos completed Factory Acceptance Trials (FAT) conducted at the end of August in Switzerland at facilities belonging to ANAVIA, an EDGE subsidiary that produces the aircraft.

“The successful trials included the first operational flying tests of all six HT-100 NAVAL systems and represent a significant milestone in the programme,” the company said. “Following completion of the FAT, all six systems were successfully delivered to the Angolan Navy, marking an important step towards their integration with the BR71 MK II corvettes and the delivery of an enhanced maritime surveillance and reconnaissance capability.”

In 2023 Abu Dhabi Ship Building (ADSB), another EDGE subsidiary, inked the $1 billion-plus deal with the Angolan navy, with three 71-meter (233-foot) BR71 MK II corvette ships as the big ticket items.

The unmanned helicopters are expected to serve onboard the corvettes, two on each vessel, and will be “fully integrated with the corvettes’ combat management systems,” according to EDGE statement. The company added that the helicopters are equipped with electro-optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensors to increase the corvettes surveillance and recon capabilities.

“Through close collaboration across EDGE, ADSB, and ANAVIA, we are combining naval platforms and unmanned systems to deliver an integrated solution aligned with Angola’s operational requirements,” said EDGE’s platforms and systems president, Khaled Al Zaabi, in the statement.

ADSB subcontracted French shipbuilder CMN naval to build the first and third corvette in its shipyard in Cherbourg, France. The second is under construction in Abu Dhabi.

Engineering decision advantage for the warfighter

Multi-orbit mission capabilities are accelerating decision making across domains.

Beyond Angola, in a February interview ADSB CEO David Massey told Breaking Defense that his company has export “ambitions in Asia, West and East Africa and Brazil. More than 50 percent of ADSB’s order book will be for export for the foreseeable future.”

由EDGE集团子公司ANAVIA制造的HT-100 NAVAL无人直升机正在起飞。（图片由EDGE集团提供）

贝鲁特——阿联酋国防巨头 EDGE 集团今天宣布，已向安哥拉海军交付了六架 HT 100 NAVAL 无人直升机，这是 2023 年达成的价值 10 亿欧元（12 亿美元）的协议的一部分。

交付是在无人直升机于 8 月底在瑞士 ANAVIA（EDGE 的子公司，负责生产该飞机）的工厂完成工厂验收试验 (FAT) 之后进行的。

该公司表示：“此次试验圆满成功，其中包括全部六套HT-100海军型系统的首次作战飞行测试，是该项目的一个重要里程碑。完成最终验收测试后，所有六套系统均已成功交付给安哥拉海军，这标志着它们与BR71 MK II型轻型护卫舰的整合以及增强海上监视和侦察能力迈出了重要一步。”

2023 年，EDGE 的另一家子公司阿布扎比造船厂 (ADSB) 与安哥拉海军签署了一项价值超过 10 亿美元的协议，其中最大的项目是三艘 71 米（233 英尺）的 BR71 MK II 型轻型护卫舰。

据EDGE公司声明，这些无人直升机预计将部署在轻型护卫舰上，每艘舰艇配备两架，并将“与轻型护卫舰的作战管理系统完全集成”。该公司补充说，这些直升机配备了光电/红外（EO/IR）传感器，以增强轻型护卫舰的监视和侦察能力。

EDGE平台与系统总裁哈立德·扎比在声明中表示：“通过EDGE、ADSB和ANAVIA之间的密切合作，我们将海军平台和无人系统结合起来，提供符合安哥拉作战需求的集成解决方案。”

阿布扎比海军造船厂（ADSB）将第一艘和第三艘轻型护卫舰的建造工作分包给了法国造船厂CMN Naval，建造地点位于法国瑟堡的船厂。第二艘轻型护卫舰目前正在阿布扎比建造。

为作战人员提供工程决策优势

多轨道任务能力正在加速跨领域的决策制定。

除了安哥拉市场，ADSB首席执行官大卫·马西在2月份接受《防务新闻》采访时表示，该公司在亚洲、西非、东非和巴西都有出口“雄心”。“在可预见的未来，ADSB超过50%的订单将用于出口。”