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South Africa’s Milkor ready to locally produce 380 UCAV for Saudi Arabia, pending procurement talks
Discussions with Saudi Arabia are part of wider efforts to expand business in the Middle East and Europe, which also includes a plan to “set up shop” in the United Arab Emirates, according to Milkor’s Harry Cassidy.
By TIM MARTINon February 05, 2024 at 7:27 AM
The Milkor 380 UCAV on display at the World Defense Show, equipped with Desert Sting and Al-Tariq weapons (Breaking Defense)
WORLD DEFENSE SHOW 2024 — South Africa’s Milkor says it has received approval to fully assemble and manufacture the company’s in-development 380 Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) in Saudi Arabia, as it looks to complete discussions with Riyadh over a firm order for the aircraft.
“We are in talks on procurement with high-level Saudi Arabian officials,” Harry Cassidy, the company’s business development manager, told Breaking Defense. “We have a local office [in Riyadh], which could support full assembly and production” should the company receive an order, he explained.
Milkor recently received a Saudi Arabia “manufacturing permit” that allows the company to assemble and produce aircraft in country, in the event an acquisition goes ahead, according to Cassidy.
Cassidy said discussions with Saudi Arabia are part of wider efforts to expand business in the Middle East and Europe, which also includes a plan to “set up shop” in the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia, like the UAE, is making a strong push for domestic production of defense articles, part of its Vision 2030 initiative.
The Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) class 380 drone was displayed here at the World Defense Show with Saudi Arabian markings for the first time, armed with Halcon Desert Sting guided bombs and Al Tariq precision guided weapons. It was also equipped with the L3Harris MX-15 Electro Optical/Infrared (EO/IR) gimbal. According to the company’s website, the Milkor 380, with a nearly 60-foot wingspan, has a 1,500-kilogram max take-off weight, endurance up to 30 hours and is a “mutli-functional airborne platform that can be used for surveillance, reconnaissance and opportunistic engagement operations.”
“We are in talks with multiple governments [regarding 380 sales] and willing to go to exports sooner rather than later,” Cassidy explained.
A total of three 380 aircraft have so far been produced at the manufacturer’s Cape Town production facility, with a fourth midway through build and a fifth that has only recently started assembly. Production currently stands at between four to eight aircraft a year, though Milkor has “flexibility to scale up” if necessary, said Cassidy.
South Africa’s own military has yet to order the drone but discussions are continuing with “different branches” of the country’s armed forces, he added.
In parallel, Milkor is running a flight test program near a South Africa Air Force base outside Cape Town that saw the 380’s maiden flight take place in September 2023. The test program will continue to run throughout 2024.
“We have flights nearly every week,” said Cassidy, adding that “we are busy” currently integrating Halcon’s Desert Sting 16 (DS-16) guided bombs and Thales FZ602 laser guided rockets, after recently signing Memorandum of Understanding agreements with the two weapon suppliers. Halcon is a subsidiary of the sprawling Emirati defense conglomerate EDGE Group.
Test firings of the armaments will only go forward once South African authorities issue a military type certification however. Cassidy said certification approval is underway but didn’t disclose a fixed timeline for a decision to be made.
He also shared that a 380 customer demonstration will take place in the “first half” of 2024.
Cassidy declined to comment on a specific cost of the aircraft but said it is “reasonably priced.”
Breaking Defense’s Agnes Helou contributed to this story
