At Dubai Airshow 2025, the Tawazun Council and European missile manufacturer MBDA unveiled a major expansion of their partnership—transforming it into a full-scale missile ecosystem initiative. The announcements included the creation of MBDA UAE, the launch of a locally manufactured loitering munition derived from France’s R2-120 Raijin platform, and the establishment of a new Emirati thermal battery production plant inside Tawazun Industrial Park. Together, these steps shift the United Arab Emirates from a buyer of precision weapons to a co-producer with growing sovereignty over critical missile technologies.
Building on the 2023 Missile Engineering Center in Abu Dhabi, MBDA UAE will act as a dedicated industrial and legal platform for co-development, local production, and lifecycle management of selected MBDA systems. The company is expected to serve as a long-term partner for the UAE Armed Forces while supporting future export activities through the national supply chain Tawazun has been cultivating.
The first major product within this framework is the diamond-shaped loitering munition based on the Fly-R R2-120 Raijin airframe. Featuring a folding rhomboidal wing that allows launch from a compact tube, the system weighs approximately 5–6 kg, carries a 1.5 kg payload, flies up to 50 km, and remains airborne for about 45 minutes. An electro-optical/infrared turret and a bidirectional datalink enable real-time video transmission and dynamic mission retasking. Its streamlined control surfaces and tail-less structure reduce drag while supporting agile flight and high-speed terminal dives up to nearly 270 km/h.
A third pillar of the announcement is the establishment of Emirati Thermal Batteries, a subsidiary of France’s ASB, one of the world’s leading thermal battery manufacturers. These batteries—activated by heat and capable of delivering high power for short periods—are essential components in guided munitions, powering seekers, processors, and actuation systems with storage lives exceeding 20 years. Localizing their production grants the UAE secure access to one of the most sensitive elements in modern missile supply chains.
Taken together, MBDA UAE, the Missile Engineering Center, the Raijin-derived munition, and the ETB thermal battery facility form a strategically coherent ecosystem designed to give the UAE indigenous control over key segments of the missile value chain. This aligns with the broader trend in the Gulf: states are no longer satisfied with buying advanced weapons—they aim to control, produce, and export them.
For industry players, the partnership promises funding, capability growth, and real-world operational insights. For the region, it marks the spread of complete missile ecosystems into new hands—potentially reshaping Middle Eastern security dynamics and global debates on regulating precision-strike technologies.
