General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) has signed a memorandum of understanding with International Golden Group (IGG) to offer the Predator unmanned aircraft to the United Arab Emirates.
“GA-ASI’s establishment of a working relationship with IGG represents a strategic commitment by both companies to help the UAE strengthen its national security and protect critical infrastructure,” said Neal Blue, chairman and CEO of GA-ASI. “IGG’s proven expertise in providing comprehensive defense equipment solutions to the UAE marketplace is a strong complement to GA-ASI’s leadership in Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance (ISR) technologies.”
Khalifa Al Baloushi, deputy CEO of IGG, said his company is “looking forward to expanding in the region and continuously improving systems to meet the requirements of different end users.”
Due to U.S. export restrictions, sales of all GA-ASI drones had been limited to the U.S. government, NATO and other select allied nations. However, GA-ASI has recently expanded its aircraft portfolio to offer an export version of its flagship Predator drone, the Predator XP. Offering comparable ISR capabilities as Predator, Predator XP has been licensed by the U.S. government for sale to a broader customer base, including countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
Predator XP exhibits the same physical dimensions, altitude, speed, and 40-hour endurance as the original RQ-1 Predator first flown by the U.S. Air Force.
Further, Predator XP is equipped with the same ISR capabilities employed on the RQ-1. The aircraft may be integrated with multiple exportable sensors, including Electro-Optical Infrared cameras and GA-ASI’s Lynx multi-mode radar.